


Looking After Arthur

by rubberglue



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bodyguard, F/M, Modern Royalty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-03
Updated: 2015-06-12
Packaged: 2018-03-28 20:26:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 38,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3868663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rubberglue/pseuds/rubberglue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prince Arthur is less than thrilled with his new bodyguard. She's not impressed by him either.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Arthur knew he was sulking as he threw himself into the oversized armchair, then took a gulp of the beer he’d poured for himself. That would show Merlin who was always complaining about how Arthur couldn’t seem to do anything on his own. He didn’t need anyone to pour his drinks. He didn’t need anyone to schedule his day down to the very last second. And he most certainly didn’t need a babysitter.

“I suppose it’ll be too much to ask you to stop scowling.”

As Merlin walked into the room, Arthur rolled his eyes and took another gulp from the beer. “I’m not a kid. I don’t need a babysitter.”

“For the last time, you’re getting a bodyguard. Not a babysitter.” Merlin took a seat on the other oversized armchair in the room. He’d gotten his own glass and sipped from it.

“Are you drinking on the job, Merlin?”

“Being your Private Secretary is a 24/7 job. If I didn’t drink on the job, I’d be a teetotaller.”

Arthur drained his glass. “You must have been drunk when you decided I needed a babysitter.”

“Have you forgotten that someone has been sending you weird letters that end with threats of mutilation and death?” Merlin emptied his own glass, stood and took Arthur’s glass, setting them on the side table. “Sometimes, I wonder if you even care about your own safety.”

That familiar feeling of bitterness threatened to rise, but with a ruthlessness honed from years of hiding his emotions, Arthur shoved it back down. Instead, he plastered a mocking smile on his face, one he knew Merlin hated, and said, “No more than my father does.”

He heard Merlin sigh and he braced himself for another of Merlin’s talks, almost disappointed when it didn’t materialise. “She should be here soon.”

“She?” Now this was an interesting development. Arthur had refused to listen to anything Merlin had to say about his new babysitter ever since Merlin broke the news. But if his new babysitter was a woman, then perhaps Arthur might be able to have a bit of fun.

“If you think she’s going to be a pushover, you can think again,” sighed Merlin. “She runs a very reputable security agency in Albion and it’s only because you’re the prince that she made time to do this.”

“Brilliant,” said Arthur. “Once more, my title comes to the rescue.”

Merlin stood and Arthur knew for sure the talk was coming. “You need to stop feeling sorry for yourself. You’re the Crown Prince for goodness sake. Millions would want to change lives with you.”

“Would you?” When Merlin hesitated, Arthur smirked. “When you find these people who want my life, let me know.”

“Arthur –“

But whatever Merlin was about to say was interrupted by a sharp knock on the door.

“Come in!”

George opened the door and after a little bow, introduced the woman Arthur assumed was to be his babysitter. “Guinevere Degrance, your highness.”

When George stepped aside, a slender, young woman with her hair swept back into a tight bun, walked towards him. Her curtsey was awkward, not helped by the gun at her hip and the tight pants she wore.

“Your highness.” Her easy confidence was different. Arthur was far more used to people who were either so full of nerves that normal conversation became impossible or so blatant with their desire to impress that they annoyed him.

“You look a little too young and small to protect my life,” he said.

Her perfectly shaped eyebrows rose. “Appearances can be deceiving.” Then after a moment’s hesitation, she tacked on his title. “Your highness.”

“Ms Degrance, thank you for coming.” Merlin stepped neatly in between them and shook her hand firmly. “Shall we take a seat and discuss your plans for his highness’s safety?”

“If we must,” said Arthur. As Merlin ushered Guinevere to the large table that dominated his office, he walked over to the bar and poured himself another drink. He felt like he would need it. The two of them were seated at the table and Guinevere had pulled out various sheets of paper which Merlin was looking at. “Well, what are we discussing?”

Guinevere looked up at him briefly, then back at the papers on his table. “This is my security plan for you, your highness.”

“I don’t know why we can’t use the usual palace security,” grumbled Arthur as he sat down and pulled the papers to him. He glanced at them but nothing made sense, not that he tried very hard to understand them. Lifting his head, he waved his hand lazily over the papers and said, “Please, tell me what grand plans you have. I’m dying of curiosity.”

Merlin frowned at his tone but said nothing. Guinevere, either completely oblivious to the tension in the air or very adept at ignoring it, gently pulled the papers back, spread them out across his table and started to explain her plan. Arthur didn’t hear a word of it. No, that wasn’t true. He heard something about how Guinevere would be by his side all the time but the rest of her plans went over his head as he paid attention instead to the line of her neck, the length of her eyelashes and the slenderness of her fingers.

“It’s a small, discreet operation, as you requested, Mr Emrys, and so only two other agents will be involved.”

Merlin nodded. “Confidentiality is of utmost importance. As you know, Arthur has been involved in a few – uh – indiscretions –“

Arthur snorted and leaned back in the chair, pushing the back as far as it went. “No need to mince your words, Merlin. What he’s talking about is that huge drama with Vivian. I’m sure you heard of it. It did end with that drunken brawl outside that famous night club whose name I cannot recall now.”

Something flashed in Guinevere’s eyes but her voice was bland when she answered. “I don’t indulge in the gossip columns, your highness.”

“Pity,” muttered Arthur as he brought his glass to his lips. “Lots of useful information there.”

“As I was saying, the King would like to ensure Arthur’s safety without causing another fuss in the gossip columns. So it’s very important that this whole matter stays confidential. That’s why we aren’t using the palace security because any changes to the schedule will be a source of gossip.”

He was missing something. “If changing the palace security schedule would lead to gossip, wouldn’t some strange girl following me around be even more gossip fodder?”

Merlin and Guinevere exchanged looks. Then Merlin sighed. “I wondered why you didn’t react. I guess you weren’t listening again.”

“What? What did I miss?”

“Ms Degrance will be posing as your new girlfriend until we uncover who is behind those letters.”

“You’re kidding.” Arthur looked at Merlin, then at Guinevere. Neither looked like they were anything but serious. “Anyone with half a brain will look her up and realise that she runs whatever her agency is called. And I can’t see how that wouldn’t encourage more gossip.”

“That’s why we’re not going to lie about that,” said Guinevere. Although her face remained expressionless, Arthur could hear the tempered annoyance in her voice. “Your girlfriend just happens to be the head of a security firm. Believe me, your highness, my job ensures I keep my identity as private as possible. There really isn’t much to discover about me online. As for the gossip, you could take a walk around the Camelot Gardens and that would lead to gossip.”

“I thought you didn’t read the gossip columns.”

It looked like a flush on her cheeks. “I don’t. But that doesn’t mean I’m ignorant. Gossip is inevitable when it comes to you. Everyone wants to know what the bad boy prince is up to next. But hopefully, our fake relationship will be dull enough to avoid the worse and more importantly, not cue the papers to the love threats you’re getting.”

“You know the press will tear you apart if they hear you are getting threatening love letters,” said Merlin. “Your reputation guarantees that they will spin the whole thing to make it your fault.”

Taking another swallow of his drink to wash away the anger that was threatening to surface, Arthur deliberately let his eyes roam over her body, lingering at the curve of her breasts. Then he smirked at her, enjoying the slight tightening of her lips, and said, “I suppose you look good enough that people might buy that I’m attracted to you.”

“Arthur.” Warning laced Merlin’s voice.

“Hey, I’m just the Prince of Albion. It’s not like I have any control over my life apparently. If I am to have a new girlfriend, then I’ll have a new girlfriend.”

Guinevere stood and picked up the papers. “I think I should take my leave. Do let me know if the arrangement is suitable for you, Mr Emrys.” She turned her brown eyes on him and nodded curtly. “Your highness.”

“You should really curtsey,” Arthur called to her back. “It’s protocol.”

The door closed with a restrained click, making more of a statement than if she had slammed it. Arthur looked at Merlin who looked like he was about to kill Arthur.

“This is completely ridiculous. I get letters like this all the time. People want to marry me. People want to kill me. People want me to give them tons of money. It’s not a big deal.”

“We’re trying to rehabilitate your reputation as well,” said Merlin. “And these letters are different from the ones you usually get. We believe they originate from within the palace.”

That was new. Or maybe Merlin had mentioned it before but Arthur hadn’t listened. “Within the palace?”

“There’s too much inside information in those letters.”

For the first time since Arthur started receiving those letters, he felt a shiver of worry. “And you think they are a threat.”

“No, Arthur. I hired Ms Degrance because I like her face.”

Arthur smiled. “She does have a nice face although I never knew you felt this way about the fairer sex.”

When Merlin bit down on a smile, Arthur felt his spirits rise. “You know I don’t. And you know I wouldn’t subject you to this without a good reason. As much of a pain you are, I rather not see you dead.”

“You’re probably the only one who thinks that way,” said Arthur, raising his glass. “But I appreciate it. Alright, bring on the babysitter-girlfriend.”

“You are an ass.”

“Can’t argue with that.”

* * *

“So? Is he as handsome as he is on television and the papers?” Elena slid into the seat next to Gwen at the small corner café and she placed the coffee and cake on the table.

Gwen smiled. “Shouldn’t you be asking if we got the job?”

“That too.”

“To answer your first question, he is a teeny bit more handsome in real life.” Immediately, images of the prince lounging carelessly on his chair floated into her mind. Unfortunately, or fortunately, the moment he opened his mouth, whatever attraction she might have felt for him disappeared. “And as for the more important question you didn’t ask, I think so. Mr Emrys likes the plans I worked out and seems keen enough to hire us.”

“But?” Elena pushed the mug of coffee to Gwen. “There sounds like there’s a but somewhere.”

Gwen sighed. “But the Prince is clearly unhappy with the plan. And as pretty as he is, he’s an awful person. Rude, condescending, full of himself.”

“And you’re going to pretend to be his girlfriend.” Elena’s laugh was without humour. “Thomas Solutions is a security company, not an escort service. We should turn them down.”

Gwen wrapped her hands around the mug and inhaled the strong coffee scent, hoping it would bolster her spirits. The past few months had been the worst of her life and as much as she agreed with Elena that the whole job was hugely undignified, they really needed the job. “I’m sorry.”

“Elyan is the one who should be sorry, saddling you with his debt.”

"It's not his fault.” She sipped slowly at the coffee and pondered whether she should eat the cheesecake Elena had bought. One cheesecake would mean extra laps in the pool this evening.

“You need to stop mothering him. He’s a grown man and you shouldn’t be picking up after his mistakes.”

Gwen gave in to the siren call of the cheesecake. Swallowing her first bite, she shrugged. “You’re probably right but at this moment, I just want to get this debt cleared and this job with the Prince will more than pay for the debt. Plus, imagine how good that would look on our references.”

“I thought this job was to be completely confidential, hence the ridiculous amount of money they are paying us. We can’t put it on our references.”

Elena was right and Gwen sighed again.

“Finish the cheesecake.” Elena nudged the plate towards Gwen. “It’ll all work out and being the Prince’s girlfriend might be more fun than you think. And you deserve some fun after the past few months.”

Gwen shot Elena a look, then finished up the rest of the cheesecake.

Mr Emrys called her late at night just as she slipped into her pink, flannel pyjamas. Her phone at her ear, she turned off the lights and slipped into bed, praying that he had good news for her so she could finally get a good night’s sleep.

“We’re happy with the plans you’ve presented,” he said. “When can you come back down to sign all the papers?”

“I’m free tomorrow morning,” said Gwen as calmly as she could even as she cheered inwardly.

“Good, we’ll send a car for you at eleven if you give us your address. Perhaps tomorrow would be a good time for you and Arthur to get to know each other as well.”

The little pom-pom squad in her stomach stopped. “Oh.” Mechanically, she recited her address as her mind became preoccupied with what getting to know the Prince would entail.

“Thank you. I’ll arrange for the two of you to have lunch together, if that is ok with you.”

She swallowed to wet her suddenly dry throat. “I’ll have to move some meetings around but I’m sure it will be fine.”

“Good. I really appreciate you going the extra mile for us.”

Gwen wanted to say she appreciated him paying her twice the usual rate minus expenses, but she merely said it was no problem, then hung up. Quickly, she texted Elena and Mithian to let them know the good news, carefully leaving out the lunch she was due to have with the Prince. Then, she pulled off her covers, switched on the lights and went to her wardrobe. What on earth did one wear for lunch with the Prince of Albion?

In the end, she settled on her usual work uniform – a white shirt with fitting black pants. She might be playing the Prince’s girlfriend but her real job was to keep him safe and she wouldn’t be able to do that in a dress and heels. Still, Gwen did put on a little more makeup than she usually did. She secured her knife to her ankle and slipped her gun into the holster at her waistband even though she knew she would have to surrender them before entering the palace.

It was a beautiful day, bright, warm and full of life. Gwen stepped out of her house and sucked in a lungful of fresh air and for a while, allowed a little seed of hope to take root in her. This royal job was going to be the first step to untangling the mess her life had become. Completely out of place in her neighbourhood, a large, sleek limousine idled along the side of her road.

“Ms Degrance?” A young, uniformed man opened the door of the car and ushered her into the plush leather interior.

Gwen earned a good living, or she did before she took on Elyan’s debts, but her car, before she sold it, was nothing like this example of utter decadence. She ran her hand across the seats, poked around at the mini bar at the side, then played with the screen. When she ran out of nooks to inspect, she leaned back into the seat, sighing as the soft leather cradled her. She could get used to being the Prince’s girlfriend.

It was a sentiment she quickly withdrew. She’d barely been in the Prince’s presence for an hour as she and Mr Emrys went through the various legal papers and he was already on his second glass of wine. In fact, he’d barely acknowledged her despite her deliberately curtseying in front of him. All he’d done was flick his eyes up and down her body, then turn away to pour himself a drink. It suddenly occurred to her, perhaps the Prince was an alcoholic.

“And of course, the confidentiality contract.” Mr Emrys seemed completely unconcerned that the Prince was prowling around the room, casting suspicious glances at them as he sipped at his wine. “You do understand that should you break this agreement, the palace will sue.”

Gwen nodded, reached over to pull the papers to her and signed her name on it. She pushed it back to Mr Emrys with a smile. “I think we’re done with all the legal stuff, Mr Emrys.”

Perhaps it was having the confidentiality contract signed that made his relax but Mr Emrys suddenly flashed her a warm smile. “Well then, I think you should call me Merlin.”

“You can call me Gwen.”

“This is brilliant.” Merlin clapped his hands together. “Believe me, it was difficult looking for a security firm who would agree to our terms. I’m glad that your firm is so flexible.”

She tried to smile. “We aim to please.”

“I’ve arranged for you and Arthur to take lunch in the Green Room. It has a gorgeous view of the palace gardens and the kitchens have prepared a wonderful meal for the both of you.” Merlin touched her hand briefly and his voice dropped. “You should enjoy the perks of palace life as much as you can.”

Her eyes immediately went to the Prince, who scowled then looked away. Beside her, she heard Merlin’s soft laugh.

“He’s definitely not a perk.”

This time, her smile was genuine. “If I can have copies of all the letters, I’ll pass them to my colleague to analyse.”

“Of course,” said Merlin. He turned to the Prince. “Shall we head to the Green Room?”

Finally, the prince let go of his wine glass, placing it on a side table. He tugged at his shirt, flashed Gwen a cold smile then nodded. “Guinevere. After you.”

The Green Room was every bit as beautiful as Merlin suggested. Full length windows covered one whole wall of the room, providing them with an unobstructed view of the lush palace gardens that was blooming with flowers of every colour. Large portraits and tapestry in gilded frames covered another wall and there seemed to be an obscene amount of ornate furniture in the room – from heavily framed mirrors to plush couches.

“George will wait on the two of you. Enjoy.” Merlin bowed and before Gwen could stop him from leaving, he was gone.

“A drink before lunch?” George offered her a glass of wine.

She never drank while working, and although the temptation to drink was strong, she politely declined and asked for water. Quickly and quietly, George appeared at her side with a glass of still water.

“Thank you,” she said, then turned her attention to the man who was to be her boyfriend. The man who was currently standing in the corner of the room and looking at her with faint amusement.


	2. Chapter 2

Arthur wondered if he opened Guinevere’s wardrobe, he’d see nothing but white shirts, black pants and sensible shoes. The clothes fit her serious, boring demeanour to the tee but if she was going to pretend to be his girlfriend, she would never be able to convince the press or the public this way. She probably should get rid of that wariness in her face as well whenever she looked at him. His reputation was bad enough without rumours that his girlfriend was afraid of him. He rubbed his forehead. This idea of Merlin’s was one of the worst he’d ever had and Merlin had had many, many bad ideas over the years.

Speaking of Merlin, Arthur couldn’t believe that he had left him alone with Ms Serious a whole half hour before lunch was to be served. She was sitting primly on the large couch, her slender legs crossed, sipping on the water she’d requested. It was obvious she wasn’t about to make the first move so he could either continue to stand in this corner and ignore her or he could join her on the couch.

He decided to stand in the corner. She was getting paid to be his girlfriend so Arthur saw no reason he should be the one to do the work. With a wave of his hand, Arthur procured a glass of water from George. As he sipped at it, he studied Ms Serious from where he stood. He supposed she was pleasant to look at. Most women were. Beneath her boring clothes was clearly a body that was tightly muscled and most likely fighting fit.

As if she felt his eyes on her, she tilted her chin up and looked back at him, her eyes meeting his. He smirked but she didn’t look away. Instead she answered his smirk with one of her own. If she thought he would be the first to break eye contact and turn away, she could think again. Keeping his gaze on her, he sipped at his water.

She did the same, the same mocking smile ghosting her face.

Arthur’s smile widened as amusement tickled his mind. This was going to be interesting at least.

In the end, the who blinks first game was settled by George returning to the room with lunch. Placing his glass on the side table, Arthur kept his eyes on Gwen as he stepped towards her, offering his hand in silence. There was a moment’s hesitation before she places her hand in his, unfolding herself gracefully and stood.

She was tiny. In his hand, her hand felt small yet in that palm, Arthur could feel strength. He led her to the table that had been set up next to the full length windows.

As she sat down, she finally broke the silence. “This is nice.”

“It’s alright,” said Arthur as he spread the napkin across his lap. “I hope you enjoy lunch. Theresa’s a great cook.”

“I’m sure I will.” She nodded, then bit her lip in the most distracting way as she pulled a piece of paper from her pants’ pocket.

George placed two bowls of soup in front of them.

Arthur watched curiously as Gwen placed the piece of paper neatly on the table next to her soup bowl. When she looked up at him, he raised his eyebrows in question.

She looked slightly embarrassed. “They are questions.”

“Hmmm. Questions about?”

“Well,” she said after swallowing some soup. Then her eyes widened and for the first time, a genuine smile crossed her face. “Oh, this is lovely.”

Pride filled Arthur. “I told you Theresa is a great cook. But do tell me, what questions do you have in that little scrap of paper. I will remind you that you signed a confidentiality agreement not half an hour ago.”

“Well,” she said again. “Since we have to pretend to be in a relationship, I have a list of questions so that we can get to know each other in the shortest time possible.”

“And is this what you do with all the people you’re interested in? Because I can’t imagine anything less romantic than being interrogated on a first date.”

When she glared at him, he widened his smile. “Firstly, this isn’t a date. Nothing we do together are dates. And secondly, I’m not looking for romance. I just want to find out who wants to harm you and keep you safe.”

Silently, George cleared their soup bowls, replacing them with their main course – a juicy slab of steak accompanied by a crisp salad and a baked potato.

“Ok. What’s the first question?” Between her love for the soup and her strangely earnest method of getting to know him, Arthur’s mood had improved considerably and he was feeling more cooperative.

Gwen eyed him suspiciously, then unfolded the piece of paper. “What hobbies do you have? Aside from drinking and partying.”

Immediately his mood deflated. She wasn’t here to get to know him. He stabbed at the salad and stuffed a piece of lettuce into his mouth. “And I thought you didn’t read the gossip pages. You can add disappointing my father and country to that.”

“You’re doing well in that,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “How about an easier one. What is your favourite colour?”

“Red.”

“What are some things you care about? Aside from yourself.”

“I don’t care about anything except myself. You know what, this is boring. No one actually thinks my girlfriends care about me as a person anyway. All you have to do in public is hang off my arm and smile at me and everyone will believe you are my girlfriend. In private, there’s no reason for us to know each other. You do your bodyguarding and I’ll do the drinking and partying.”

Something flickered in her eyes but she said nothing, choosing to focus on her steak. They barely spoke through the rest of the meal. Arthur could tell that it made her uncomfortable but he found it hard to care. For a moment, when she’d talked about getting to know him, he’d believed her. Then, it turned out that she was just like everyone else.

Dessert arrived and finally, Gwen spoke. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said those things about you when I don’t really know you.”

He waved a hand. “Nothing to be sorry about.”

“Are you interested in the plans we have drawn up?”

“For my safety? Why not? I’ve no idea why Merlin doesn’t trust the palace security.”

She sat up and Arthur saw a glint of excitement in her eyes. “Merlin tells me that someone has been sending you threatening love letters and they are coming from within the palace.”

“So he thinks,” said Arthur. “I think he’s making a fuss out of nothing. Lots of people fancy themselves in love with me – it’s the whole prince thing I have going on - and some people are a little more passionate about it than others.”

Gwen blinked. “Your secret admirer isn’t just proclaiming their love for you. They are also claiming they know something that you wouldn’t want revealed, and threatening you.”

“They are lying. The press is constantly digging into my life. Nothing is a secret.”

“Clearly, Merlin is worried enough to hire me to keep you safe when you’re out of the palace and to get to the bottom of this matter.”

Arthur shook his head. “Merlin worries too much. You are going to find that these are just the ravings of a deluded mind.”

“Still, can you think of anyone who you might have upset? Hearts you might have broken?”

Tossing his napkin onto the table, Arthur stood, then gave her a slight smile. “I’m sure if you look through the gossip pages, you’ll find a whole group of them. Now, I think we can end this lunch here. I hope you enjoyed the food.”

Gwen stood as well. “The food was very good.”

“Good. I will pass your compliments to Theresa.”

“Merlin says you are going for a party tomorrow night. I will be here at six. Does that work for you?”

His back facing her, Arthur stared out of the large windows as he tried to temper the bitterness that was threatening to bubble up. These parties were once freedom for him but with Gwen now hired to tail him during them, pretending to be his girlfriend, he would no longer have that freedom. “That’s fine.”

“I’ll see myself out, your highness.”

He turned just in time to see her curtsey mockingly.

* * *

When the nice, young man placed yet another box on her small sofa, Gwen wasn’t quite sure what to think. Merlin had mentioned a delivery of “appropriate clothes for a gala dinner” after her lunch with the prince, but Gwen hadn’t grasped that it meant Merlin getting a whole boutique delivered to her home.

“I was told to pass you this note, Ma’am.”

She took the card from the young man, then rummaged through her purse for a tip. With a cheery thank you, the young man walked out of her living room, leaving Gwen surrounded by a variety of boxes – on her coffee table, on her sofa and even on the floor. What on earth was Merlin thinking?

I wasn’t quite sure what you would like or be appropriate for a bodyguard-girlfriend. Select whatever takes your fancy and I’ll send someone over on Monday to pick up the rest. ~ M

Before Gwen could even open the first box, there was a knock on her door. Surely it wasn’t more boxes.

“Mithian! Elena!” She frowned. “What are you two doing here on a Friday night? Shouldn’t you be with Vivian, Elena?”

“She’ll understand forgoing one date night for the opportunity to see you try on fancy dresses.” Beside Elena, Mithian nodded and grinned with far too much amusement in her eyes.

Without waiting for an invitation, Elena stepped into Gwen’s apartment and that was when Gwen noticed she’d brought some wine with her.

“Wine?”

Mithian pulled off her coat. “Of course. It’s going to be a fun girl’s night out. You giving us a fashion show, alcohol, Moulin Rouge – it’ll be great.”

“Yup,” said Elena. “And wow, did the prince send over a whole shop?”

Closing the door behind them, Gwen shook her head. “The prince did nothing. His private secretary sent them over. I was going to get some take out. That ok with you two?”

“From Sandy’s?” Elena asked as she picked up one of the boxes. “Have you looked at this? It’s expensive stuff.”

Mithian dropped her purse onto the sofa and walked over to where Elena was. “Can we open the boxes?”

Gwen knew she wouldn’t be able to stop them. “Oh go on then. Satisfy your curiosity. I’m just going to get some glasses for the wine and the take out menu.”

From the kitchen, she could hear the sound of boxes opening and Mithian and Elena ooh-ing and ahh-ing over whatever were in those boxes. Gwen had never been much of a fashion fan, unlike Mithian who was always up-to-date with the latest trends. To Gwen, clothes were functional –enough pockets to carry all her things and comfortable enough for her to kick whoever needed to be kicked. Like the prince. Digging out her wine glasses, Gwen gave them a quick rinse, then snagged the take out menu from where it was stuck on the refrigerator and walked back to the living room which seemed to have exploded into a mess of packaging papers and empty boxes.

“Oh Gwen, these are gorgeous. Gorgeous and expensive,” cooed Mithian as her hands ran over a deep blue dress.

“I’m almost jealous,” said Elena as she lounged on the sofa.

Gwen pushed some boxes off the coffee table and placed the glasses on it. “Almost, because you know what a pain the prince is.”

“Ah.” Leaning forward, Elena grinned. “Tell me about lunch.”

“Lunch was uneventful,” said Gwen. She didn’t know what she had expected from lunch. One moment, the prince was agreeable and almost friendly, and the next he was prickly and closed off. But he was right. She wasn’t there to be his girlfriend or his friend. She was just there to keep him alive. There was no reason for them to get to know each other. “The prince was as unfriendly and dismissive as all rich people are – no offense, Mithian – and he made it very clear that I was just to hang off his arm and be his simpering girlfriend.”

“You should have shown him some of your moves,” said Mithian. “He sounds like he deserves a good punch.”

“Come on, enough about the prince. What do you want for dinner?”

Once they settled dinner, and as they waited for it to arrive, Gwen sat back as Mithian unboxed all the dresses, complete with running commentary about their appropriateness for a charity gala at the fancy Lake Hotel.

Waving the wine glass, Gwen sighed. “I’m not looking forward to this at all. Would you like to play the prince’s girlfriend, Mithian. You’re far more suited.”

“I wouldn’t turn him down but he needs someone who can use a gun and kick some ass. Not an IT whiz. I suppose in case of an emergency, I’d be able to send out our GPS coordinates. Now, this is the dress you want. You look gorgeous in red, it isn’t too form fitting, has a nice high slit so you should have a good range of movement and is long so you can hide that knife of yours. Go try it.”

Elena clapped her hands. “Yes, go try it and do a little cat walk for us.”

“No.”

“Oh go on!” said Elena, then she batted her eyelashes. “Please?”

Gwen laughed. “Does this work on Vivian?”

“Here, go try it before dinner comes.” Mithian pushed the dress into Gwen’s arms, and with a sigh, Gwen stood.

At the doorway to her room, she turned and narrowed her eyes at her friends. “No laughing.”

Gwen had definitely never worn something like this. A few years ago, Gwen had been to a prestigious industry dinner with her then boyfriend, Lance. For that, she had spent a good chunk of her savings on a dress. Then, she’d thought it beautiful and exquisite. This red dress was in another world altogether. It was nothing she would have chosen for herself. For one thing, it emphasised her curves, curves she didn’t realise she owned till she slipped on this dress. And Mithian was right. It wasn’t too tight that her movement was restricted. Gwen ran a hand down the smooth material.

“Gwen! Are you hiding?”

With one last look at the stranger in the mirror, Gwen left her bedroom to teasing wolf whistles from her friends. As they gushed over how wonderful she looked, Gwen felt her cheeks burn and her heart swell. No matter what, Mithian and Elena were always supportive of her. “Stop it,” she muttered, glad when the doorbell rang, signifying the arrival of their dinner.

Gwen had changed back to her comfortable t-shirt and shorts and was sitting crossed-legged on the sofa digging into her lemon chicken rice. In the background, Christian and Satine were singing on a large elephant.

“I just got the letters from the palace,” said Mithian. “I’ll look through them and maybe we can put together a profile of his obsessed lover."

"Sounds good. I don't think the prince is going to be much help since he's not taking any of this seriously. But you can always talk to his private secretary, Merlin."

"For all we know, the prince might be right and it might not be anything. Anyway, I'll let you know as soon as I can."

Elena scoffed. “He’s a handsome one, the prince. I imagine that he’ll have a lot of people fancying themselves in love with him.”

“Merlin believes these letters come from within the palace,” said Gwen. “That would narrow it down. Can’t imagine what the appeal of the prince is.”

“Really?” asked Elena. “I’m not even interested in men and I think he’s a handsome bugger.”

Mithian shook her head. “He’s a bastard though. All he ever seems to do is party and bum around. Didn’t he drop out of university?”

“Nah,” said Elena. “He did finish his degree.”

“He did kill his friend drunk driving though,” said Mithian. “And of course, all he got was some community work and probation.”

“Can we talk about something other than the prince?” asked Gwen. “I already have to spend so much time with him. He doesn’t need to invade my personal time as well.”

Mithian and Elena finally left her place close to midnight and slightly tipsy. Thankfully, Vivian swung by to pick the two of them up in her bright pink car. Leaning against the door frame, she waved her friends off.

“Thanks, Vivian.”

Vivian waved back, just as a slightly drunk Elena pressed a kiss against her shoulder. “No problem. Have fun on your date with the prince!”

“It’s not a date,” said Gwen to the back of the pink car. She sighed. If it was a date, she’d be feeling a sense of excitement not this feeling of dread. The prince made it sound so easy but she was a bodyguard, not an actress. She was hoping that getting to know the prince better would make things easier but clearly, he wasn’t willing to cooperate.

Enough of the prince. Gwen went back inside her house. Still feeling awake, she opened a drawer and pulled out her accounts. Slipping on her glasses, she looked at her numbers. Just two months ago, Thomas Solutions was on the verge of expansion. Gwen had been interviewing a few women for this expansion, then Elyan had called her. She still remembered the phone call, the undercurrent of fear and panic in her brother’s voice. Thankfully both Mithian and Elena had been more than understanding, allowing her to dip into the company’s finances to help Elyan. The moment she got a personal loan, she’d paid the company back. Most of it anyway. Expansion was out of the question for now but once they got paid for the successful completion of this job, the company would be back on track.

Gwen rubbed the back of her neck. All she had to do was to resolve the prince’s job satisfactorily and everything would work out.


	3. Chapter 3

"She's here. Are you ready?" Merlin walked into Arthur's room.

"Is she in her white shirt, black pants combo?" Arthur adjusted his shirt, took one last look at himself in the mirror then turned to Merlin. "Why aren't you dressed for the party?"

"Because I'm not going. She's in the Green Room, waiting."

Arthur frowned. "Why aren't you going? You always go with me."

"You realise attending parties with you isn't actually in my job scope?"

"Come on." Arthur flashed a smile. "It'll be a snore without you. And someone needs to entertain the bodyguard."

"Gwaine and Percy will be there. And entertaining the bodyguard is your responsibility."

"Merlin. Don't you want to keep an eye on me? I might drink too much, say the wrong things to the press." Arthur ran a hand through his hair, then looked into the mirror again to see if he had messed up his hair too much.

"You're perfectly capable of behaving yourself. Just don't let them get to you. Anyway, it's my mother's birthday and I promised her dinner." Merlin grinned. "I used your name to get a reservation at Jean Pierre and she's really excited."

Merlin was crafty, knowing that Arthur had a soft spot for Hunith. At the mention of his mother, Arthur's vague irritation at finding out Merlin wasn't going to be at the party disappeared. "I didn't realise it was her birthday. Charge the dinner to me."

"I thought you would say that. Don't worry. We'll have a great time on your money." Merlin slapped a hand on Arthur's shoulder. "You look great, as usual. Now go down and meet your girlfriend.

"You're taking too much pleasure in this whole bodyguard-girlfriend business."

"I think that she's a good match for you. She's sensible, strong, won't stand for your nonsense and totally able to karate chop you when you get out of hand."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Are you concerned about my safety? Or my love life?"

"Your father is going to want you to get married soon. Carry on the line and so on," said Merlin with far too much amusement. "Might as well get started."

"Shut up, Merlin."

Gwen was, once again, seated primly on the sofa with her leg crossed. She was sipping from a cup and staring out of the windows into the gardens. Her hair was pulled back tightly into a bun but instead of her usual garb, she was wearing a red dress. Since she didn’t appear to have noticed him, he allowed himself the luxury of examining her. The dress was relatively conservative but the colour looked good against her skin. It rode up a little and Arthur admired her toned, shapely legs. She must be just as toned under the dress. At that thought, the beginnings of desire pooled in him and he had to look away.

“Like what you see?” Gwen stood, smoothing down her dress as she arched an eyebrow at him.

Arthur tried not to smile, especially when he noticed her giving him the once over. While she did look nice enough in the red dress, it was the haughty tilt of her head and the challenge in her tone that he found himself responding to. “It is a surprise, to see you in a dress.”

“I wouldn’t want to embarrass you in front of your peers.”

This time, he let his laugh escape. It was a cold, bitter laugh. “You’re either completely sheltered from my reputation or you’re a better actress than I expect. Don’t worry. I embarrass myself enough amongst my peers. There’s nothing you can do to worsen my reputation.”

“Does this mean I am free to wear my usual shirt and pants in future?” Arthur thought he saw a hint of a smile on her face.

Their eyes met. “Wear whatever you want. In fact, I’d love to see how they react when I bring you to dinner in your shirt and pants.”

“Ever the rebel, hmm?”

He stepped forward and offered her him arm. “Where would be the fun if I weren’t such a rebel?”

The limousine was large enough that the two of them were able to sit at different ends with no danger of getting into each other’s personal space. Arthur dug out his phone and aimlessly scrolled through the various messages on it. They were nothing important, mostly his friends wanting to know if he was attending the gala dinner. Well, they would soon find out. He darted a look at Gwen who was studying some sheets of paper. From somewhere, she’d gotten a pair of glasses and they were perched on her nose as she frowned down at the papers.

“Something wrong?”

He must have startled her. She looked up at him, her eyes for once, clear of the wariness that was often lurking in them. “Oh. I was just examining the floor plans of the hotel and the ballroom. Elena faxed them over this morning.”

“Are you looking for the best place for us to escape for a little quickie? Because I approve of that.”

When she scowled at him, then pointedly went back to staring at the plans, Arthur chuckled.

“Most girls would jump at the opportunity,” he said.

“I expect much more from my lovers than a quickie,” she said, as coolly and calmly as if they were discussing the morning news. “Pity that’s not something you offer.”

Arthur grinned. “I promise you that any quickies we have would not disappoint.”

He heard her sigh. “Unfortunately, I doubt I’ll ever have the opportunity to partake in your quickies. Speaking of quickies, Mithian has been compiling a list of your previous girlfriends and partners. It would help us if you could tell us if anyone of them are particularly upset with you.”

“I can’t imagine why any of them would be.” He had been enjoying teasing Gwen and now she was back to business, Arthur felt annoyed. Sure, the few love letters that Merlin had reluctantly showed him seemed a little more excessive than the usual ones he had seen and maybe there was the occasional reference to death and blood, but Arthur didn’t see why this necessitated this whole thing with Gwen’s agency. Closing his eyes, he dropped his head back and hoped Gwen didn’t have any more questions for him. If anyone wanted him dead, it wouldn’t be any of the girls he’d dated over the years. Not that he was going to tell Gwen that. He didn’t need anyone digging up the past. It had been hard enough moving on from it and the last thing Arthur wanted was to relive it again. And if the past was the reason why someone wanted him dead, then they had every right to.

The limousine pulled to a stop. Arthur opened his eyes and glanced over at Gwen. If she was nervous at appearing on his arm as his girlfriend, it didn’t show on her face.

“I hope you’re ready,” he murmured. “Wait till I open the door for you.”

He got out of the car into a barrage of flashlights. Immediately, he smiled and greeted several of the reporters he knew. Playing the Prince of Albion was easy. Much easier than being himself. He crossed over to the other side, opened the door and helped Gwen out. Now, as more flashlights went off, he could see the uncertainty in her eyes. As she got out of the car, he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close.

“Are you Prince Arthur’s new girlfriend?”

“What is your name? How did you get together?”

He tightened his arm around her waist and hurried them towards the entrance. The moment they stepped into the hotel, Gwen let out a sigh.

“That was quite an experience. Is it always like this?”

“Always,” he said. “But it’s only going to get worse. We can ignore the media, but we aren’t going to be able to ignore the people in the ballroom upstairs.” He looked at her then smiled. “Of course, we could always use one of those escape routes you were memorising to disappear.”

“So you can have your wicked way with me?” She lifted her chin. “I don’t think so. You’re going to have to do much better than give me a limousine ride if you want to get into my pants.”

Arthur laughed, then without thinking, he carelessly dropped a kiss onto her forehead. Immediately, she stiffened.

“Sorry,” he said. “But you should get used to this if you’re going to be my girlfriend.”

She nodded, then slipped her hand in his. “Of course.”

“Arthur!” Arthur turned to see Gwaine striding towards him. Behind him, a gorgeous lady hurried after him.

“Gwaine.”

“And who is this young lady?” Gwaine took Gwen’s hand and pressed a kiss on the back of it. “I’m Gwaine Green.”

“Francine,” said Arthur as Gwaine’s date finally caught up with them. “This is Guinevere.” Arthur smiled when Gwen reacted to the use of her full name. She might be the one with the security/private investigations agency, but that didn’t mean she was the only one with the skills to do an internet search.

Gwen withdrew her hand from Gwaine and shook Francine’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”

"And where are you from?" Gwaine asked. "I've never seen you around before."

“Around,” said Gwen with a small smile.

Arthur realised her focus wasn’t on the two people in front of her. Instead, she was looking around the hotel lobby, probably checking out escape routes. That thought made him smile again.

“Shall we enter the ballroom?” he asked. “I’m sure we’re already fashionably late enough.”

* * *

Cocktails were being served just outside the main ballroom and tempted as she was to grab one of those pretty glasses, she asked the obliging waiter for some water. She scanned the area, comforted by the fact that everything that was as Elena said it would be. Arthur’s hand lingered on the small of her back as he laughed and joked with Gwaine and Francine and while he seemed relaxed, she was aware that there was tension in him. She had to concede that he was right. Being his girlfriend required nothing more than standing there and smiling and nodding. It was also a great way for her to check Gwaine and Francine out but she doubted either of them were behind the love notes.

“I’m curious.” Francine touched her arm lightly, drawing Gwen’s attention to the large diamond ring she wore. “What do you do? And how did you meet Arthur?”

She glanced up at Arthur who was still talking to Gwaine about sports. “Uh, well we –“

“We met while she was doing some security work for the palace,” said Arthur smoothly, his hand slipping to her waist and tugging her close. His eyes met hers and he smiled at her. “Fell for her the moment I laid eyes on her in her prim and proper shirt and pants.”

His smile might have looked genuine, but Gwen saw the mocking glint in his eyes. “I, however, took a longer time to warm up to him,” she said. “I didn’t think he was all that charming initially.”

His fingers dug into her waist but the smile remained on his face. “Definitely played hard to get, but she succumbed to my charms anyway, didn’t you, my darling sweetpea?”

“I did, honeybun,” she simpered at him.

Gwaine looked a little shocked but aside from raising his eyebrows, he said nothing. Francine, however, wasn’t so easily silenced. “How lovely. So what kind of security work do you do, Gwen?”

“I’m a security consultant mostly. My company, Thomas Solutions provides security for various companies and individuals, from IT security to private investigations to basic bodyguarding.”

“Fascinating,” said Francine. “Why, Arthur. You’ve gotten yourself a little bodyguard of your own. This is so adorable.”

Gwen half-expected Francine to reach out and pinch her cheeks but thankfully she didn’t. She did, however, link her arm with Gwen’s and tug her away from Arthur’s hold. “We have to get to know each other better. How about we leave these two boring guys and chit chat among ourselves. I’ll introduce you to the other women.”

“I really much rather stay here with Arthur,” said Gwen, gently disentangling their arms.

Arthur arm snaked around her waist again. “She is so captivated by me that she can’t bear to be without me.”

Smiling and nodding, Gwen kicked Arthur’s shin, taking pleasure in his sharp intake of breath. “How can anyone resist him?”

Gwaine finished his drink and shook his head. “You two are going to give me a toothache. I’ve never seen you like this, Arthur.”

“What can I say?” Arthur moved his hand a little higher so his fingers skimmed the bottom of her breast, then caught her eyes, mischief twinkling in them as his lips curled into a sensual smile that sent Gwen’s heart pounding. “I’m head over heels in love with his girl.”

Before Gwen could respond, Arthur was lowering his head to hers. She should kick his shin again but for some reason, her body refused to move. The moment Arthur’s lips touched hers, she closed her eyes, all her senses focused on the feel of his lips moving against hers. And it was only their lips that were touching but Gwen could feel the kiss all the way to the toes. It wasn’t as if Gwen had never been kissed before and she’d shared many more than satisfactory kisses with several men but Arthur’s mouth was sending sharp spikes of desire through her and it took all her willpower to pull away.

For a moment, Arthur stared at her. Then he lifted a hand, cupped her chin and ran his thumb across her lower lip. His voice thick, he said again, “I’m in love with her.”

Gwen wasn’t sure if he was talking to her or to Gwaine. Sucking in a breath and moving away from Arthur, she lifted her head and looked around for a passing waiter. “I – uh – need a drink.”

The moment was over and the amusement was back in Arthur’s eyes. “My sweetpea is very shy.”

Stemming the urge to roll her eyes at him, she bit out as sweetly as she could, “And you, my dear honeybun, have no shame.”

Humour glinted in Arthur’s eyes. “Dinner will be starting soon. Let’s go in.”

The charity the dinner was in honour of was one that worked with the homeless and Gwen quickly realised that the royal family were major patrons of the charity. She asked Arthur about it, curious, but he simply shrugged his shoulder and said that he only came because his father made him.

Gwaine and Francine were at the same table, together with several of Arthur’s friends. Friends, Gwen gathered as she listened to their conversation, who he’d known since university at least. Once she ascertained that there didn’t seem to be any immediate threat to Arthur in the vicinity, she settled down a bit and paid attention to the conversations around her. But for all the talking, nothing was revealed about Arthur, nothing that various news articles hadn’t already told her. He liked sports, played them often with his friends and when he wasn’t partying, he was apparently lazing about in the palace, indulging in royal pleasures like horse riding.

Despite the kiss outside the ballroom, Arthur more or less ignored her presence once dinner started. Not that she minded. Without his constant touches or innuendo-laden words, it was a lot easier for her to do her job. She kept her attention on the various people in the ballroom, many of them famous enough that she’d at least seen them on television before. She watched the various waiters and staff. Occasionally, someone would address a question towards her. And sometime, someone would make a joke that caused her to laugh.

“And now, to present the token of appreciations to our tireless volunteers, the Prince of Albion, Arthur Pendragon.”

“Duty calls,” muttered Arthur with a sigh, as if he had been called upon to do something difficult.

Arthur wiped his mouth with his napkin and tossed it onto the table before standing up to a smattering of applause. On stage, he said a few words before being directed to hand out various certificates and trophies.

“That wasn’t that hard,” she said under her breath when he finally returned to his seat. “It’s the least you can do for such a good charity.”

He shot her a look, but said nothing. Reaching for his drink, he downed it, then turned back to her, leaning towards her as if he was about to whisper something intimate to her. His warm breath tickled her ear, sending strange sensations running through her body. “I rather you stick to your job and stop telling me what I should or should not do.”

“Of course,” she said. “I apologise.”

His mouth was still at her ear when he said in a low whisper, “Apology accepted, Guinevere.”

She closed her eyes and swallowed. Few people called her Guinevere but it wasn’t just that he used that name. It was the way he said it, as if he was savouring every syllable of her name, caressing each one with his tongue. When she opened her eyes, he was looking at her in triumph. Clearly he was trying to unnerve her. Lifting her chin, she refused to let him see how he was affecting her.

Eventually, the night wound down and once they said their goodbyes, Arthur took her hand as they made their way to where the limousine waited.

As she toed off her shoes and sank into the soft leather, she sighed. “I’m glad tonight was uneventful.”

“I’m disappointed we never got to use the escape routes your friend painstakingly plotted out for us.” Amusement mixed with exhaustion tinged his voice.

“You don’t even seem up for a quickie.”

He rolled his head to the side to look at her. “I am more than willing to prove you wrong.”

His yawn ruined his words and Gwen shook her head. “Save your energy. I have high expectations. Why are you so tired anyway?”

“It’s hard work giving out certificates,” he said, then yawned again. “Since you don’t require my services, I’m just going to take a bit of a nap.”

Once Gwen was certain that Arthur’s eyes were closed, she looked at him. He did look tired and she wondered why she’d never noticed it before. She always prided herself on her observational skills, a key skill she needed in her line of work. But she was missing something when it came to Arthur. Only she didn’t know what.

By the time they reached the palace, Arthur had awoken from his nap. He looked sleepily at her, his smile lacking the edge it had earlier in the night. “I guess the palace security will take over from here.”

She nodded. “Merlin says you have another dinner in two days. I’ll see you then unless we have a breakthrough in your case.”

“Alright.” He ran a hand through his hair, then smiled at her again. “Pity we didn’t get to have that quickie.”


	4. Chapter 4

At the knock, Arthur looked up from the screen. “Come in.”

He expected Merlin but instead, Sefa, a relatively new housekeeper, entered instead.

“Your highness.” She curtsied, balancing the tray she carried carefully in her arms. “Fresh water and some biscuits for you, your highness.”

“Thank you,” he said. “Would you bring them over?”

She nodded then gracefully placed the tray on the table. Occasionally, she darted glances at him and he smiled encouragingly. He knew his father could be hard on the servants so he tried not to be the same.

“If you don’t mind, your highness, may I tidy your room?”

“Of course. Pretend I’m not around.”

Usually, cleaning of the rooms were done when the rooms were empty but Arthur supposed the fact that he rarely left his room meant that Sefa had little choice. He watched as she deftly pulled the sheets off his bed, then followed by slipping on new sheets. She seemed like a good worker, he thought absently. Their eyes met again and he smiled at her. She flushed and looked away.

He reread the email from Leon, highlighting a few issues that had cropped up recently, and once again suggesting that Arthur should stop hiding in the shadows. Arthur made a note of the issues and ignored the second part of the email. He was well aware that putting his face on the Albion Hearts charity would immediately trigger a great deal of publicity and following that, funds but funds wasn’t the problem here. And despite both Leon and Merlin’s insistence that he was just being paranoid, Arthur was pretty certain that all that would happen was his past being dug up again and the charity dragged into that mess.

And the charity was the one thing that meant a lot to him, the one thing that he had actually been successful at in life, the one thing he hadn’t ruined. Yet.

By the time he replied to Leon’s email, Sefa was gone. He glanced at the time on his screen, groaning when he realised that it was soon to be lunch time. Usually he ate in the cosy Green Room with Merlin but today, his father was back from whatever diplomatic trip he had been on and had arranged lunch with him. A stickler for protocol, his father would expect him to be dressed formally and in the dining hall on time. Arthur wondered if Merlin would want to join them for lunch.

Merlin less than gracefully declined. In fact, over the phone, he’d laughed at the suggestion. Which left Arthur all alone with his father, who as usual was eyeing him critically while poking at his broccoli.

“Morgana returns tomorrow.”

Arthur nodded. “She told me.”

“Are you attending the Prime Minister’s ball tomorrow?”

“You know I am, father.” Arthur stabbed at his salad. “I’ll be happy not to go if Morgana wants to go instead.”

As expected, his father ignored his words. “I saw the papers. That girl is the bodyguard Merlin chose? She doesn’t look like she is up to the job.”

Arthur sighed then moved his roasted potatoes from the five o’clock position to the nine o’clock position on his plate. “Merlin assures me that she is more than capable. She has good references.”

His father gave him a disbelieving look, then shook his head. “I’ve arranged for more security in the palace as well. Are you sure you haven’t done anything dumb again that has resulted in all these threats? It’s going to come out eventually, probably in the news, so you might as well tell me.”

“No, father.”

“I don’t need more scandals originating from you. Sometimes I wonder what it is I did wrong that you are like this.”

Arthur chewed on his food and kept his eyes on the table. Years of experience had taught him that there was no use challenging his father and there were moments when he wondered if his father was actually right about him.

"You know how much that incident cost me and is still costing me. All the goodwill of the people won by my parents and your mother wiped out by your actions, the amount of damage control that had to be –“

Arthur had heard this line so many times in the past few years that it sometimes surprised him how much the words still hurt and how much emotions they stirred up in him. “I think Lord Odin lost more than any of us,” he said quietly, his fingers tightening around the fork and knife he was holding.

His father looked coldly at him. “If not for you, no one would have lost anything.”

There was nothing to say to that. As calmly as he could, Arthur placed his cutlery on the table, and stood. “Excuse me, father. I’ve lost my appetite.”

Back in his room, Arthur flopped on his bed and closed his eyes as he tried to push the memories out of his mind. The screech of tyres, the heat from the fire, the screaming then the blaring of the ambulance sirens. Then, the constant demands from everyone for answers.

“You really need to forgive yourself.”

“What the hell?” Jerked out from his miserable thoughts, Arthur sat up to see Merlin lounging at his desk. “Why are you lurking in my room? No, never mind. I don’t want to know. Go away.”

“I thought you might want to know that you’ve received another letter and made an appearance on the Royal Watch website.”

Arthur fell back onto his bed, throwing his arm across his eyes. “No. I don’t want to know any of that. Now, go away.”

Ignoring his instructions as usual, Merlin continued, “Also, your sister returns tomorrow.”

“I can’t wait. With her back, father can focus his attention on her and pretend I don't exist.”

He heard Merlin stand. “You know that’s not about to happen. Like it or not, you’re the crown prince and your father is right. You need to –“

“Don’t start.” A cold hand closed tightly around his heart, a feeling that was far too familiar to Arthur. “You, of all people, know I’ve tried. People see what they want to see and, you know, maybe there’s an element of truth in their impression of me.”

“Arthur.” Merlin’s long-suffering tone was back. “It’s been 5 years. How long are you going to punish yourself?”

Lifting his arm from his face, Arthur stared at the ceiling and shrugged. “I don’t have to go to work, I attend parties all the time, I open the occasional school or hospital and spend money like water. I even have a hired girlfriend – I’m hardly suffering.”

Even without looking, Arthur could imagine the look on Merlin’s face. Disapproval with a mix of exasperation, his lips pressed together. If he was really annoyed, those huge ears of his would probably be tinged red.

“You can’t live like that,” said Merlin quietly.

Arthur forced a smile. “It’s a great life.”

There was a long silence and for a moment, Arthur thought Merlin might have left the room. He turned his head to see Merlin standing at the window.

"Leon is going to send over details of the new requirements for non-profits. Feel up to looking through them with me? Plus, I’m thinking of making some changes as to how we identify who to help. I think it’s been a bit of a hit and miss at the moment.”

Merlin rolled his eyes but smiled. “Fine. But I’ve a meeting with Gwen this evening to pass her the latest letter and get updates on her investigation.”

“Hmm.”

"The pictures on Royal Watch suggest that you two got a long well.” Clearly, Merlin had found his sense of humour again.

This time, it was memories of kissing Gwen that he tried to push out of his mind. He didn’t need to remember the kiss he’d replayed in his mind several times last night and he didn’t need to think about how soft her lips were and how they felt against his. Then he remembered her quiet disapproval of him.

“She’s pleasant enough.”

“I’m glad. I was worried before,” said Merlin. “I would be happier when this whole situation goes away.”

“Yeah. Me too.”

* * *

As she towelled her hair dry, Gwen stared at the webpage. In full colour and in great detail, a photo of Arthur kissing her stared back. With a sigh, she clicked the webpage shut and pushed her laptop away. What was wrong with her that she kept rereading the article, speculating on who she was? It didn’t help that Gwaine had been interviewed and he quite gleefully told the whole world that he’d never seen the Prince so smitten before. And, now, every time she looked at the photo, she remembered the kiss and how, for a tiny moment, she’d forgotten she was there playing a part and not actually a woman desired by the Prince. Not that she wanted to be involved with a Prince. That sounded like more trouble than it was worth, if he would even look at a lowly commoner like her twice in the first place. He was a good actor though, she had to give him that.

Just as she stood to put the laptop away, there was a sharp knock on the door, followed by a key being inserted into the lock. Elena. A quick glance at the clock told her that she was early, which meant that Vivian must have dropped her off.

“Hey,” said Gwen as Elena walked into her apartment. “Done the research?”

“Of course.”

The floorplan of Grand Hotel, where the President’s Ball was being held that evening, was spread across Gwen’s dining table and Elena leaned over it, a red pen in her hand as she marked out escape points and areas that were vulnerable. As Elena scrawled across the plans, Gwen frowned trying to memorise it. Once again, guns wouldn’t be allowed into the event. And anyway, Gwen was a bigger fan of escape rather than confrontation. Greater chance of staying alive. Still, Gwen doubted whoever Arthur’s stalker was would try anything during such public situations.

Her front door opened once more and she heard the familiar sound of Mithian’s stilettos against her floor.

“Damn the weather. I just had my hair done and it’s ruined,” said Mithian as she carelessly tossed her coat onto Gwen’s sofa. She shook her pink umbrella lightly, then leaned it against the door. “At least the letters didn’t get wet. Don’t suppose I can get a towel from you?”

“Of course.” Gwen went into her bathroom to grab a towel. When she emerged, Mithian had a mug of coffee in her hands, courtesy, Gwen supposed, of Elena who had helped herself to Gwen’s kitchen. A pile of letters sat on top of the floorplans next to Mithian’s booting up laptop.

Gwen passed the towel to Mithian then slid back into her chair and peered at the laptop. “Any breakthrough?”

“Actually yes.” Setting the mug down, Mithian delicately sifted through the letters, pulling out two letters, placing them side by side in front of Gwen. “Take a look at these two letters.”

Gwen picked them up to read and almost immediately, Elena was leaning over her shoulder and reading along.

" ... your bright blue eyes, the shape of your sensual lips …”

“Really, can’t you read silently?” asked Gwen as she twisted her head to frown at Elena whose response was to grin mischievously. “I don’t need to listen to Arthur’s virtues out loud.”

Elena’s grin only widened and her eyes twinkled with amusement. “You never did tell me about how good he is with those sensual lips. Those photos –“

“Ooh, yes. How was kissing the Prince of Albion?” Mithian rubbed her hands together gleefully and leaned forward, crumpling the floorplans. “Was it as good as it looked in the photos? You looked like a woman ravished.”

“Can we focus?” Gwen lifted the letter up in the hopes that it would hide the blush that had flared together with the memories of the feel of Arthur’s lips against hers.

“You’re blushing,” cooed Elena.

Gwen dropped the letter to the table and scowled. “How can you even tell I’m blushing?”

“I just know. So, I take it the kiss was good?” Elena’s shoulder bumped against hers. “You lucky girl.”

“Alright fine. The Prince is a good kisser. Can we please get back to work right now? I still have to get ready for the President’s Ball.”

Mithian nodded. “I have an appointment too later. Anyway, although both letters look alike superficially but one is written earlier than the other.”

“So?” Elena asked.

“This letter was written much earlier.“ Mithian’s perfectly manicured nail landed on one of the letters Gwen had been trying to read, tapping it. “And it is clearly a love letter – it’s a paean to the Prince. This other letter, written a month later, though is slightly different. Merlin called them threats, but there’s no malice in them.”

“No malice,” repeated Gwen. “Are you saying that the Prince is in no danger then?” Something akin to disappointment settled in her stomach and she told herself that it was because if the Prince was in no danger, then she might not get the money she needed.

“We can’t be sure,” said Mithian. “Frankly, the letters sound more like warnings than threats, which means the writer knows something. And if the writer does know something, then the Prince might still be in danger.”

Elena leaned back in her chair, balancing it on two legs. “So we just have to ferret out the letter writer then.”

“That shouldn’t be too hard. I’ll need access to the palace’s printers though.”

“I’ll talk to Merlin about that,” said Gwen.

Mithian stayed as Elena went through the floorplans again, sipping her coffee and making the occasional comment. But once her she finished her coffee, she muttered something about an appointment, then disappeared.

As soon as the door closed, Elena laughed. “I think she’s having a secret affair.”

“What?” Gwen looked up from the plans that she was studying. “An affair?”

“Vivian says I’m being silly, but doesn’t she have lots of appointments recently? Ones she never shares with us?”

“We’re friends and colleagues. It doesn’t mean that we have to share absolutely everything with each other,” said Gwen.

Elena eyed her before speaking. “But we’re best friends.”

This time, Gwen couldn’t help but smile. “That we are. And I’m grateful.”

“Grateful enough to tell me if something develops between you and the hot prince?”

Balling up a napkin, Gwen tossed it at a laughing Elena, who quickly scrambled from her seat, her arms raised in surrender. “Alright. I know I can’t beat you in hand-to-hand combat so I’m just going to go now.”

“Good decision,” said Gwen, giving in to the urge to grin at Elena.

“All is good with the layout of the hotel and ballroom?” asked Elena as she folded up the plans.

Gwen nodded. “I’ll look at it again before I leave just to be sure.”

“It’s in your phone. It’s even interactive. Isn’t modern technology great?” With a wave of her hand, Elena disappeared out of Gwen’s door, leaving her alone with her thoughts about how modern technology had led to her face plastered all over the internet.

She was just applying some lipstick when the phone rang. Briefly, Gwen harboured the hope that it was Merlin, telling her that the Prince had fallen down and broke his leg and wouldn’t be able to attend any more public events for the next six months. But a glance at her phone told her it was her brother.

“Hey Elyan.” Gwen clasped the phone between her cheek and shoulder, then tried to put on some eyeshadow.

“Hey sis. I was surfing the internet and –“

Gwen groaned, then put the eyeshadow brush down and held her phone in her hand. This was going to require her full attention.

“ – dating the prince!”

“Yeah, it’s not really like that. It’s work.” If she couldn’t put on makeup now, she could pack her purse at least. “And it’s confidential, so don’t go talking about it with your friends. Just say we’re dating.”

Elyan sounded most suspicious although he agreed. “Actually I was planning to call you even before I saw the photos. I was at the Rising Sun yesterday –“

“Elyan! You said you wouldn’t go there again.”

“Big Don called. I had to.”

Gwen dropped her purse, sank into the nearest chair and sighed. “I also thought you cut communications with Big Don.”

She thought of the loan that she’d taken because of Elyan and the promises he’d made her. Anger warred with disappointment but she didn’t have time to have it out with Elyan right now, not when the car Merlin sent would be arriving in less than an hour.

“No, you got it wrong, Gwen. Listen. I wanted to call because I wanted to say thank you.”

“For?”

“Paying off the debt. Big Don said we’re settled.”

“So there isn’t more debt that you haven’t told me about,” asked Gwen warily. “And you haven’t been in contact with Cenred again?”

“No. I am totally debt free and since I’ve stopped answering his calls, Cenred hasn’t contacted me again.” Elyan didn’t sound like he was lying but Gwen was familiar with how Elyan often glossed over problems to avoid worrying her, only to have them blow up later. “I know better now. I’m just so grateful you had the money to loan me. I promise you I’ll pay you back.”

“Alright, good. We have to catch up soon but I need to get ready for work now.”

She heard Elyan chuckle. “Another date with the prince?”

“Yeah, I’m going to the President’s Ball.”

“You’re definitely moving up in the world, aren’t you?”

She smiled but tried to keep it out of her voice. “I have to go, Elyan. Good bye.”


	5. Chapter 5

Arthur half-expected Gwen to turn up in her shirt and trousers combination. He might have even been looking forward to it but when he entered the limousine, he realised with a tinge of disappointment that she was dressed in an off-shoulder blue dress. She did have lovely shoulders, he thought. Strong and lean, just like her. Her hair was once again tied up in that stern bun.

"Guinevere. I see you are without maps today. No chance of a quick escape to sate our needs?"

"Your highness." Then she, with that familiar tilt of her chin, looked out of the window and went on to ignore him.

"I missed you, strangely enough. This frosty disregard, smart remarks and hot kisses. It's quite a combination." He paused, pleased that he'd made her turn towards him. A frown marred her forehead and her eyes held a promise of punishment. A grin spread across his face and he delivered his coup de grace. "Sweetpea."

Her eyes narrowed imperceptibly. “Oh, honeybun, I’ve been far too busy with important things to even spare you a thought. Unfortunately, you’re not that interesting.”

“Are you saying that you haven’t been working on my case? Because then I should let Merlin know about your dereliction of duties.” He nodded earnestly at her. “We, royals, are accountable to the people, you know. We can’t simply waste our money on people who don’t do their work.”

She arched an eyebrow at him. “Mithian has a lead. She’s meeting up with Merlin tomorrow to discuss it with him.”

“Do I get to know?” asked Arthur, his good humour fading slightly. He opened the mini fridge and pulled out two bottles of water, passing one to her.

“Well, Mithian believes that the letters are more warnings than threats. She wants to work with Merlin to try and figure out who the letter writer is. We believe they might have more information on who would want to cause you harm.

His good humour was completely gone now. “Maybe the letter writer is deluded.”

“Have you done anything recently that might have upset anyone?”

His father’s accusations the day before echoed in his mind, merging with Gwen’s questions.

“When haven’t I? I believe I was caught in flagrante with one of the Umbrian’s princesses last month. Maybe she’s upset that the photo made me look better than her. The lighting was in my favour.” He looked out of the window, looking blindly at the passing scenery.

“Arthur.”

“You don’t realise just how sensitive these princesses can be.”

“Do you ever take anything seriously?” Her voice was sharp.

He sighed, then turned to look at her. “Look, I know my reputation isn’t great but I can’t think of anyone who would want to harm me.”

That was a lie of course. On top of the list would be Odin, probably fighting with his father for that spot.

“I don’t know why you’re being so difficult and uncooperative.” She crossed her hands on her lap and turned away from him, disapproval written all across her face.

“What do you want? A whole list of all my transgressions from the years past? Can’t your investigators do an internet search? It’s all there with photos.” He tried to push down the bitterness that was rising in him and tore his eyes from her.

She didn’t answer and they rode the rest of the way in silence.

As they walked silently into the Grand Hotel, Arthur kept one arm around Gwen’s waist. She leaned slightly into him, appearing relaxed although he could feel the coil of tension in her body, ready to spring into action if his life was in danger. The consummate professional – even the media frenzy couldn’t keep her from her job.

“Don’t worry,” he murmured into her ear, flashing a quick smile for a photographer he recognised. “No one is going to attack me here.”

“Your problem is that you don’t worry enough.”

He supposed he was grateful she didn’t kick his shin. Waving to another reporter, he leaned down and whispered, “I thought my problem was that I didn’t take anything seriously.”

Her eyes met his. “You have many problems,” she said coolly but a slight smile tugged at her lips and the annoyance and bitterness that had been gnawing at him eased slightly.

“Come, I’m sure you’re dying to meet the Prime Minister.” Tightening his hold on her waist, he led her up the stairs and into the main ballroom. “He worries a lot and is very serious. You’ll love him.”

Several guests hovered around the Prime Minister but when Arthur approached, they quietly stepped aside. Arthur was not surprised when the Prime Minister’s first reaction upon seeing him was a flicker of disapproval covered up quickly by a wide smile and a booming greeting.

“Ah, Prince Arthur.” His eyes flickered over Gwen. “And this must be your new girlfriend.”

“Prime Minister. Guinevere, may I introduce you to Gaius Black, as you well know, Prime Minister of our lovely country.”

“Guinevere.” The Prime Minister took Gwen’s hand and gave it a hearty shake. In response, Gwen smiled winningly. Why hadn’t she bestowed that smile on him, Arthur wondered. It was a good smile, one that made him want to smile as well. “You’re not his usual type.”

Her smile barely changed as she replied. “I beg your pardon, sir, but you just met me, so it’s a little early to judge, isn’t it?”

Arthur couldn’t resist and he grinned down at her. “I think Gwen is every bit my type. Aren’t you, sweetpea?”

Although he knew the kick was coming, he wasn’t able to dodge it in time. “Of course, honeybun.”

A few more pleasantries were exchanged, a few more people introduced to his bodyguard-girlfriend, several more jabs passed between them before they were able to sit down at a table. Arthur was glad for the break in socialising. He liked socialising generally, but this wasn’t his usual crowd. This crowd was full of his father’s buddies, all of whom seemed to share the same hobby of judging him. Lifting a glass to his lips, he scanned the room, bitterly thinking about how his father had sent him in his stead.

A young, ambitious politician, John, Athur thought his name was, was seated at their table and started to engage Gwen in conversation. It quickly became obvious that John wasn’t interested in educating Gwen about his political views. Oh no, from the way he was boasting about his education, the car he drove and the apparently very successful plans he’d put in place for the country, it was quite clear that he was trying to impress Gwen. As he sipped his wine, Arthur listened in on them, amused at the blatant boredom written across Gwen’s face. He caught her eyes and grinned, earning himself a jab in his side.

He was only half listening, his attention on the various people streaming into the ballroom, when John mentioned the old, rundown park that he had been eyeing for Albion Hearts. The size of the land and the choice location, near the picturesque river that flowed through Camelot city, and with easy access, made it the ideal place for a centre for children.

“We are planning to develop some residential and commercial buildings in that area.” John said, putting his hand on Gwen’s arm and she promptly pulled her arm away. “It’ll be catered to the needs of families and children. We believe strongly in supporting families.”

Arthur crossed his arms. “Counter-intuitive isn’t it, then, for your party to champion cutting the budget for family services? But of course, what do I know about politics or governance?”

While the annoyance that flashed across John’s face was reward enough, it was the surprise on Gwen’s face that sent a fission of pleasure through him.

"Exactly," said John, looking coldly at Arthur. “What do you know about politics or governance? I don’t mean to be rude, but aside from grace various occasions and cut some ribbons, what exactly do you do?”

“I’m sure that as the crown prince, Arthur has many duties and responsibilities that neither of us would understand,” said Gwen as she rubbed his arm.

Arthur caught her hand, closed his fingers around hers and held it in his lap. “I heard that a non-profit organisation was interested in that piece of land.”

“It’s a prime piece of land,” said John with a wave of his hand. “I can’t imagine how they will afford it. And there are other places they can consider. Developing this piece this way will bring great economic effects to the city.”

“You’re probably right,” said Arthur. He yawned, then leaned back into his chair, keeping Gwen’s hand in his, both pleased and confused that she’d defended him and still hadn’t withdrawn her hand.

When would this blasted ball start?

* * *

Gwen didn’t know exactly why she had decided to defend Arthur when she did. It might have been John’s utter rudeness or the fact that Arthur had taken her by surprise when it seemed that he actually took an interest in what the government was doing. She didn’t think he cared about anything beyond the tip of his nose.

Gwen was also mystified as to why she allowed Arthur to continue to hold her hand. It wasn’t until the President finished his opening speech that she finally extracted her hands from his so that she could join in the polite applause. And it was polite because apparently, worried and serious equalled boring. Arthur, on the other hand, who never worried and was never serious was most likely not boring at all. Not trustworthy and dependable, but not boring.

And now, Gwen had no clue why she had said yes to a dance with Arthur, who had now wrapped both arms around her waist, far too close to her butt and breathing far too close to her face. The dinner had been delicious, although John endeavoured to establish balance by keeping the conversation boring. Now and then, Arthur would make a comment but mostly, he spent dinner greeting various dignitaries who filed past their table to chat with him. He’d introduced her to what felt like a million people, all of whom seemed both charmed and wary of Arthur. It was strange. But she’d gratefully slipped many of those million people her name card, which was very business-like of her and aside from a raised eyebrow the first time she did it from Arthur, he said nothing.

When all those people finally stopped bothering them, dinner was over and the dancing had started.

“Do you dance?” asked Arthur, leaning so close she could smell him. He smelled like clean linen which to her, made no sense at all.

She should have lied, told him that she loathed dancing or that she had two left feet, but the truth was she loved dancing. It was like the martial arts she took, but less violent. And in a ballroom with high ceilings, dripping chandeliers and a live orchestra, she found herself placing her hand in Arthur’s and letting him lead her to the dance floor. Right, so she probably knew why she was now in Arthur’s arms on the dance floor.

“You can’t actually dance, can you?” she asked after they had spent about a minute standing in one spot, swaying.

Arthur leaned back slightly to look into her eyes, then he grinned. “No. But I think I sway pretty well.”

Around them, people were twirling and moving across the floor, careful to avoid them. “Isn’t dancing part of the royal curriculum?”

“Did you think there is a special school for royals?” Amusement glinted in his eyes, and he pulled her closer so that her breasts brushed against his chest as they moved. He didn’t even seem to notice. She noticed far too much.

“They should have had one for you,” muttered Gwen, disappointed that her vision of being swept around under the large chandelier was slowly disappearing. “Then you might be a better prince.”

The smile he gave her lacked any warmth. “You’re assuming I want to be a better prince. Actually, I’m quite happy with the way I am.”

His hands moved further up her back and Gwen was pretty sure that if it wouldn’t look weird, Arthur would probably hold her at arm’s length. She might have only have spent a limited amount of time but it seemed that Arthur hated when people judged him, so why did he create this very image that begged to be judged? He seemed intelligent enough and with the amount of resources he had at his fingertips, there was little he couldn’t go to repair his image. Volunteer for a charity, mingle and interact with the commoners, bake cupcakes for sweet old women who would surely swoon over him.

“I know I’m incredibly handsome, sweetpea, but you’re staring a little blatantly.” A smirk spread across his face, his carefree persona clearly back in place.

Gwen rolled her eyes, and his chuckle ghosted across her skin, sending the most unwanted goosebumps rising in its wake. His arms slipped back down and he tugged her closer. The only reason she let him was because she didn’t want to end up in a wrestling match on the dance floor.

“It’s perfectly normal to be attracted to me. Lots of people are.” His voice was low and soft against her ear as his fingers moved against her back. “Think of it as a job bonus.”

Tilting her head up, Gwen smiled. “Really, honeybun, you don’t have to hide your raging attraction for me behind such bluster.”

The problem with Arthur’s laugh wasn’t that he threw his head back and exposed a throat that Gwen had an inexplicable desire to press her lips against, but that it was utterly infectious and it took a hard bite on her lower lip to stop herself from laughing with him.

“I know this is a fancy ball and all, but laughter is permitted,” Arthur said once he stopped laughing. His eyes were still laughing and he managed to ease her even closer to him so that his cheek was plastered against the side of her head. “You know, I thought this whole bodyguard thing would be unbearable, but this isn’t too bad. Mostly.”

And Gwen knew she was in trouble when that sounded like high praise to her.

Several dances later, a few more helpings of dessert than she should have had and many more long, boring conversations with very important people, the ball finally started winding down when the President took his leave. Her hand in Arthur’s, Gwen scanned the area around the front of the hotel where they stood, waiting for their car. Crowds were always dangerous, more so when you had someone determined to hurt you. But aside from the fake praises, air kisses and flashes from the press photographers, nothing struck Gwen as particularly wrong.

As the crowd dwindled into the cool night, the two of them edged closer to the road where the many luxury cars were turning in to pick up the other guests. Arthur’s attention was preoccupied by some other politician who was trying to make nice with the crown prince so Gwen kept a look out for their limousine although she was doubtful if she could recognise it. All of them looked the same to her. There was some jostling in the crowd and they moved closer to the road. Arthur’s hand held hers tighter.

They must have run out of valets or there was a jam at the parking area because there was a sudden lull in the cars pulling up. The crowd pushed them again, then suddenly, Arthur’s hand was no longer holding hers. Gwen turned just in time to see him stumbled off the curb and onto the road. He was smiling, straightening himself up but Gwen heard what sounded like the crunch of gravel over the chatter of the people around here. Someone was talking to her but Gwen kept her focus on Arthur, pushing the man out of her way. He yelled at her.

Arthur waved, as oblivious as the rest of the people.

It was definitely a car and one that was traveling at high speed. Without headlights. Damn.

Stepping off the curb, Gwen threw herself at Arthur, grabbing his waist and pulling him out of the way just as the car swept past them. She twisted so she landed first with Arthur on top of her.

“You’re heavy,” she huffed, pushing stray hair from her face. Her bun must have come loose. “Are you alright?”

Arthur blinked a few times before nodding, but he made no effort to move. “You’re strong.”

She rolled her eyes.

Around them, the guests stared down at them in silence.

Pushing Arthur off her, Gwen stood. Murmurs of concern went through the crowd with a few people helping a still-stunned Arthur up. Several women helped to dust him off. A number congratulated her on her daring rescue, which she nodded at. Gwen looked back at the road, but as expected, the car was long gone. Someone must have pushed Arthur onto the road but it was going to be difficult to find the culprit, especially when discretion was demanded.

“Did you see what happened?” Gwen asked the nearest woman, one she vaguely remembered as being the wife of a politician.

Her hands clasped against her ample bosom, she shook her head. “I was just telling Robert here about how slow they were getting the cars out when I saw you dart out and save the prince. You’re a hero.”

“The press are going to have a feast,” said another man with a sigh. “Vultures, every single one of them.”

Gwen didn’t recognise him but quickly found out that he too didn’t notice anything amiss. In fact, no one she asked did. She looked over at Arthur who was looking no worse for wear. His smile, however, was small and when he reached a hand for her, she took it.

With a curt ‘no comment’, to the swarming press, Arthur practically dragged her into his limousine which had finally arrived.

“Thank you,” he said once the door closed, enclosing them inside.

“Part of the job. Are you hurt?”

His smile was back. “Are you going to kiss me better?”

“You don’t pay me enough.”


	6. Chapter 6

Merlin was hovering and Arthur told him as much, not that it put a stop to his hovering.

“I’m alive. I just have a few scratches and a headache. A headache that would go away if you leave and let me go to bed.” He took another sip of the water Merlin had pressed into his hand earlier and regretted the decision to call Merlin from the limousine.

After a whispered conversation with Merlin, during which they both cast pitying looks at him, Gwen told him to rest and then she was gone, before he could suggest that she spend the night looking after him. Instead, he was now stuck with Merlin the annoying.

“Are you sure you don’t need me to get someone to look at your scratches?”

Arthur groaned. “Go away, Merlin. I’ll be fine.”

“You sure?” Merlin moved to the door. “Because I can stay the night, if you want.”

“The only thing I need is for the press not to publish this, but that’s not going to happen.”

“This isn’t your fault.”

“Everything is my fault, according to my father. You had better be at breakfast tomorrow. I’m not facing him and Morgana on my own.” Arthur closed his eyes, trying to avoid thinking of what a disaster breakfast would be. He could claim injury and have breakfast delivered to him but that would only encourage his father to barge into his room, a place he very much preferred to keep his father out of.

The door of his suite snicked close and Arthur closed his eyes, letting himself finally digest the events of that night. So the threats were real. Perhaps he should have taken a closer look at the letters earlier, paid more attention to Merlin’s concerns but really, he might have the reputation of being a bit irresponsible and selfish but none of that seemed worth killing him over. He rubbed his head and stood. There was always Odin, he supposed.

Stripping off his clothes, dumping them on the floor, Arthur slid under his shower, sighing with pleasure as hot water splashed onto him, soothing out the tension in his body. He wondered if Gwen was doing the same and he smiled to himself. When he saw her tomorrow, he would mention this, just to see her reaction.

His sweetpea.

And Arthur grinned. Who knew his bodyguard would be so entertaining? He might almost miss her when she’s gone.

“Rise and shine!” His covers were pulled off the bed and Arthur cracked open an eye to see Morgana looking down at him.

Throwing one arm across his eyes, Arthur groaned. “I could have been naked under there.”

“Nothing I haven’t seen after all these years. I hear you almost got killed yesterday.” His bed sank as Morgana sat on it and started pulling at him.

Arthur smacked her roaming hands and scowled at her. “What on earth do you think you are doing?”

“Seeing if there’s any lasting damage to you.” Morgana took her hands off him but continued to perch on his bed. “Any idea who wants you dead? Aside from dad.”

“Maybe it’s you. All those declarations about not wanting to be queen, all lies.” Pushing himself to a sitting position, Arthur stretched his limbs, pleased to note that they all seemed to be working well.

“Please,” said Morgana. “If I wanted to kill you, I’d be more subtle and more successful.”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” He slid off the bed and made his way to his bathroom, uncaring that he was clad in nothing but his boxers. “Don’t come in after me. A man needs his privacy.”

Thankfully, when Arthur emerged some time later, his room was empty, save for a trace of Morgana’s perfume. Pulling on a t-shirt and some slacks, he left his room to meet Uther and Morgana for breakfast. Merlin had better be there as well.

As he closed the door to his suite, he saw Sefa walking towards him, her cleaning equipment in tow. Quickly, she dipped into a curtsey and he nodded in response.

“Your highness, I heard that you were in an accident last night.” She kept her head down and looked at the floor. “I hope you are alright.”

“I’m fine, Sefa. Thank you for your concern.”

She lifted her head and smiled briefly, before quickly scurrying away.

Arthur let out an audible sigh of relief when he pushed open the doors to the dining room and saw Merlin already at the table, chatting to Morgana. His father was evidently planning on a dramatic late entrance. He sat down next to Merlin who immediately turned concerned eyes onto him.

“I’m fine,” said Arthur before Merlin could speak. “Don’t fuss.”

“It’s not every day that someone tries to murder you,” said Morgana. “Let Merlin fuss or he’ll be full of pent up anxiety he can’t express.”

“I am not full of pent up anxiety and I express myself all the time.” Merlin turned to him. “Ignore her.”

“I always do,” said Arthur as he reached for a piece of bread. “Is father so shocked by my possible death that he’s unable to get out of bed?”

“I think he went to speak to your chauffeur,” said Merlin. “He should be here soon.”

“Oh joy,” said Arthur. “Make sure Kathy gets a good severance pay and a decent reference letter.”

Morgana’s multitude of brightly coloured bangles on her arm jangled as she spread butter on her toast. “Maybe Kathy was in on the ploy to kill you.”

“Kathy’s been my chauffeur for years without incident. Why would she suddenly want to kill me?”

“Probably because you subject her to all that making out in the back of the limousine.”

Arthur glared at Morgana. “Firstly, there is a privacy panel that separates Kathy from the back and secondly, I can’t believe my own sister –“

“Step-sister.”

“- step-sister believes all the nonsense in the gossip pages.”

“There’s no smoke without fire.”

Just as Morgana said that, the door opened and Uther walked in. Arthur looked up as his heart sank. Uther, never one to smile often, did not look the least pleased.

“I hope you didn’t fire Kathy. It has nothing to do with her.”

Of course, his father ignored him. Breakfast steadily went downhill after that as Uther seemed to be more concerned about managing the press than his well-being. As his father went on and on to Merlin about what needed to be done to deal with the press. No one was to know about the death threats, and it was to be played off as an accident. Morgana shot Arthur a wry look and he simply sighed and buried his nose in his breakfast.

“Ms Guinevere and Ms Mithian are here.”

Uther looked sharply at Arthur. “Is that your bodyguard?”

“Yes,” said Merlin. “Our apologies, your highness, but I’m sure you understand that this is an urgent matter. Do excuse us.”

Morgana watched them as Arthur stuffed a spoonful of cereal into his mouth and left the room with Merlin, grateful that he didn’t have to spend a moment longer with his father. George was lingering in the corridor and Arthur told him to bring Gwen and Mithian into his suite.

This time, she was in her tight white blouse and black pants, her hair pulled back in her usual bun. It made him smile. Who knew an outfit like that could be so sexy? Even the fancy dresses she wore as his date couldn’t compare to what she was wearing now.

“For someone who was almost murdered last night, you look happy,” said Gwen as she crossed the room towards him.

Arthur widened his smile, took her hand and kissed it. “I’m always happy to see you, sweetpea. One night apart is far too long.”

Gwen yanked her hand away and glared at him.

Someone coughed and only then did Arthur notice the woman next to her. Tall with long, brown hair that fell to her waist and framed her delicate face, she was very attractive. She wore a light, sleeveless blouse with a yellow skirt and was looking curiously at him and Gwen.

“Mithian, this is Arthur. He flirts with anything that moves,” said Gwen.

Arthur shook Mithian’s hand and smiled. “Lovely to meet you. Gwen is just cranky at being apart from me for so long.”

Her foot connected with his shin.

Merlin took a step forward. “I’m Merlin. Arthur’s long suffering Private Secretary. Shall we sit and perhaps we can discuss yesterday’s incident?”

“Of course,” said Mithian. “Thanks to your efficiency, Merlin, I managed to narrow down which printers were used in the letters. Luckily, because the printers in different departments were replaced at different times, I could match the letter to the department it came from.”

Arthur sat on the armchair, leaving the sofa to the other three. “And what department is that?”

“Household.”

Merlin frowned. “There are a lot of staff in the household department. We will have to interview them all.”

“Well,” said Mithian as she pulled out a notebook from her bag, “I did a little bit of amateur analysis of the content of the letters with Gwen and Elena and we have come up with a tentative profile of who wrote the letters. Perhaps if you look at it, you might be able to narrow down who might have written the letters.”

“But you don’t think whoever wrote these letters are behind the threat to kill me?”

Mithian shook her head. “No. I believe that whoever wrote these letters has a huge crush on you and knows about the threat to kill you. They are trying to warn you, yet not given anything away, which makes us suspect that this person is also close to whoever is trying to kill you.”

“Well then,” said Arthur, closing the notebook that Mithian had passed to him. “There’s no need for interviews and psychological profiles. All we need to do is to is run some detailed background checks on the household staff and see who has any connections to Lord Odin.”

“No one has heard from or seen Lord Odin in five years,” said Merlin quietly.

“Clearly he’s been holed up in his estate, plotting a way to kill me,” said Arthur. “Not that I blame him.”

“If you knew that Lord Odin had a reason to want you dead, why didn’t you say anything earlier?” asked Gwen.

Arthur stood, hating that the memories of that day five years ago were returning together with the familiar black hole of guilt. “I didn’t actually believe that my life was in danger until yesterday.” He slipped his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “Since we’ve now solved the case of who wants me dead, I guess you three can get started looking for the person who has knowledge of Lord Odin’s plans. I’d suggest you leave it alone but Merlin probably isn’t going to let me die on his watch.”

“Arthur –“ Merlin stood as well as the two woman stared at him.

“You promised, Merlin. Don’t forget.” And with those words, Arthur walked to his bedroom and slammed the door. He leaned against the shut door, then slowly sank to the floor, burying his face in his hands.

* * *

_ 12 May - Crown Prince Arthur Pendragon arrested on charges of causing death while driving under the influence. _

_The Raglan Police responded to a call on 11 May at 2:14am which reported an accident along Essetir Road. The Crown Prince and his friend, Devon Pembrooke, son of Lord Odin of Meredor had crashed their car into a tree. Both were taken to hospital. The Crown Prince is said to be in stable condition while Mr Pembrooke is in emergency surgery._

Gwen stared at the news report on the screen as if it would give her insight into what Lord Odin was planning to do with Arthur. Subsequent reports stated that Arthur had taken full responsibility for the crash and as Mithian had said before, eventually worked out a deal in which he did community service as punishment.

Such a light sentence for such a devastating mistake. The perks of being crown prince, thought Gwen, unlike her or her brother, who paid dearly for every mistake they made.

After Arthur shut himself in his room, Gwen hadn’t seen him again so the three of them had ended up discussing a vague plan of action. Throughout their discussion, Gwen had the feeling that Merlin was keeping something from them but perhaps his nervous disposition was due to stress. Elena had met up with them back at Gwen’s apartment later and Mithian had quickly and efficiently, the way she did everything, updated Elena. Now, the two of them were back in their small office working on the household staff, looking for any connections with Lord Odin, while Gwen was left looking through information about the accident.

Eventually, she couldn’t take it anymore. Reading about how easily Arthur had gotten away with murder made her angry and yet she couldn’t forget that haunted look in his eyes as he closed the door on them. That part of her was actually feeling sorry for Arthur frustrated her. Just because he had a pretty face and a sexy smile didn’t make him a good person and Gwen knew that. Switching off her computer, she grabbed her gym bag, hopped into her car and drove off to where she preferred to deal with her feelings.

The familiar sights and sounds of the Focus Gym eased Gwen’s churning emotions and she was glad to hit the treadmill. Pushing the speed up, Gwen concentrated on her breathing and the rhythmic pounding of her feet, pushing out all the conflicting thoughts about Arthur in her head.

“Stressful day?” Her trainer Elaine asked once Gwen got off the treadmill. “You don’t usually come in on a Tuesday.”

Wiping her face with her towel, Gwen shrugged. “Spot me as I lift some weights?”

“Yeah, I have time.” They walked over to the weights section. “I saw the incident yesterday in the news. You saved the prince’s life. Impressive stuff.”

Gwen lay back and wrapped her hands around the bar. “You know I can’t talk about work. Why don’t you tell me about Tommy as I lift these?”

Asking Elaine about her son was the most effective distraction. She was a great trainer, but as Gwen learned quite quickly, a very good gossip as well. Just as Gwen was about to warm down, her phone beeped.

Call me asap. Merlin.

It was then she noticed three missed calls from Merlin. Swearing under her breath, she abandoned her warm down, grabbed her bottle and towel and made her way to the showers, calling Merlin on her way.

“I hope you have no dinner plans because Arthur does,” said Merlin.

“It’s not on his schedule,” said Gwen as she tucked the phone between her ear and shoulder so she could open her locker. She knew that being on-call at all times was part of her contract, but it was still annoying.

“I know. He’s in a bit of a mood right now and the King isn’t helping. He just needs some space.”

“And he can’t find space within the palace walls?”

“Sorry. I’ll send a car to pick you up. Where are you?” asked Merlin.

Gwen sighed. “Unscheduled escorts are chargeable. And I’m at Focus Gym. I need ten minutes.”

The limousine was idling outside the gym, blatantly flouting all sorts of traffic laws when Gwen emerged. She hoped that Arthur wasn’t planning to go anywhere fancy because she definitely wasn’t dressed appropriately. As the limousine smoothly pulled away from the curb and towards the palace, Gwen attempted to do something with her still damp hair. Eventually, she settled for running her fingers through her curls and hoping that it would dry nicely. Sinking into the soft leather, Gwen closed her eyes.

The door swung open and Arthur slid into the car. Leaning forward, he gave instructions to the chauffeur before sitting back and finally looking at her.

“Merlin didn’t have to drag you to keep me company.”

“I think he was more interested in keeping you safe,” said Gwen.

“I’m not in the mood for company. I told Merlin not to call you.” Then he frowned. “You look different.”

“I was at the gym. I can sit at a different table and you can sulk at your own table if you prefer.”

Arthur reached out and touched the ends of her hair. “Your hair is loose.”

“It’s also wet. Stop touching it.” Gwen shifted away from him. “Where are we going?”

“A little place I know outside of the city. It serves great roasts.”

“Name?” Gwen pulled out her phone. “I need to research it.”

“The menu isn’t that extensive,” said Arthur. “It’s a small place.”

Gwen sighed. “I’m not researching the menu. I need to research the location, just in case.”

“The Purple Phoenix. I’ve already called them so we’ll get a nice, private dining space. Very romantic.”

While his words were teasing, they lacked the mocking tone she was used to. Gwen turned and looked at him in the shadows of the car. There was tension in his posture and he stared straight ahead. Impulsively, she touched the back of his hand and although he didn’t look at her, Arthur turned his hand and held hers loosely. She could pull her hand away at any time.

She didn’t.

With her only free hand, she tapped the name of the restaurant, only to discover that it was a small pub situated by what looked like a really picturesque stream, surrounded by woods, just outside the city. It was tucked in fairly remote area and Gwen suspected that it survived on word of mouth. She sent the information to Elena, then did her own virtual scouting of the area, bringing up a map of the area.

“Are we likely to be attacked by bears? I hope you have moves to fend off a bear attack."

It was clearly an attempt at humour on Arthur's part and when Gwen glanced at him, he attempted a smile. It wasn’t a particularly good attempt. He blinked then looked away again, but not before Gwen saw the shadows that were smudged under his eyes. For the first time since she read the news of the accident, she felt a twinge of sympathy. He might have gotten off lightly but it must be hard to live with the fact that he was responsible for his friend’s death.

“I do,” Gwen said as lightly as she could. “We run as fast as we can.”

“Sounds good,” he said flatly, dropped her hand, shifted and looked out of the windows. “I feel safer already.”

Gwen wanted to ask him about the accident. All the reports had been vague, suggesting that it was all his fault but without detailing what exactly happened. She wanted to know if he still felt guilty about the accident, if he ever felt guilt about it. She wanted to know if he’d tried to make amends. She wanted to know if he was the selfish, uncaring prince the media painted him or if he was the warm, humorous and thoughtful man that she sometimes glimpsed.

But instead, she looked down at her phone, watching as the little blue dot moved along the map towards their destination.

Bright headlights suddenly shone into the limousine, dimmed slightly by the tinted windows.

“Guess we’re not the only ones driving out to Purple Phoenix today. It’s the only place on this road.” Arthur slouched further into his seat and continued to stare out of the window.

Gwen twisted in her seat to look out of the back window, grumbling softly when she realised she couldn’t see anything because of the high headlights from the car behind. What kind of driver used high beams in this situation? Jabbing at the button on the door, Gwen stuck her head out the moment the window rolled down. It was an ordinary car, green, but tailing them far too closely for Gwen’s comfort. Slipping back into her seat, she tapped on her phone, sending their GPS coordinates to Mithian, then checked that her gun was with her.

She touched Arthur’s hand. He looked at her with a frown. Before she could tell him of her suspicions, their limousine lurched forwards as the car behind slammed into them.

“Damn!” Gwen pulled open the privacy pane. “Keep the car moving and get out.”

“What on earth?” Arthur looked at her.

Leaning over Arthur, she pushed his door open, then shoved him out of the car. She tumbled out of it behind him, landing just beside him on the gravel. Pain shot through her leg but she scrambled up and yanked on Arthur’s arm. A dark figure moved on the other side of the road and Gwen prayed that it was the chauffeur. The green car was still kissing the bumper of the limousine, pushing it off the road. Perhaps they were lucky enough that the driver didn’t see them leave the car.

She yanked on Arthur’s arm again. “Get up. We need to move.”

Evening had fallen and the only light were from the lampposts at distant intervals and the moon that peeked out between the cover of clouds. This was good, Gwen told herself. It would make it easier for them to escape detection. Only the lack of sun meant that the temperatures were dropping and Gwen had left her jacket in the car. She moved behind some foliage, dry leaves crunching under her feet, and Arthur joined her.

“Kathy – the chauffeur,” he rasped, squinting into the dim light.

The cars were a distance away.

“Stay here.” Ignoring the pain in her ankle, Gwen darted across the dirt road, whispering Kathy’s name.

“Here. What’s going on?” Kathy walked out from behind some trees, breathing heavily.

A car was approaching. Gwen was certain that it would be the green car turning back to look for them. She had to get back to Arthur. “Come with me, quietly.”

The two of them ran across the road just as the green car’s headlights swept past them.

“Kathy,” said Arthur the moment he saw them. “Are you alright?”

“We need to move further in. Follow me.” Slowly, Gwen picked her way through the grass and bushes. She wasn’t sure where exactly she was going and she didn’t want the light from her phone to attract their attacker’s attention. She could no longer hear the engine and she resisted the urge to look back to see if the car was gone or had stopped. “Come on,” she urged.

Eventually, confident that they were far enough from the road, Gwen stopped, giving her now throbbing ankle some rest. Adrenaline was now surging through her and all her senses were attuned to their surroundings. In the moonlight, Arthur’s face was pale while, next to them, Kathy gulped in air.

“What now?” asked Arthur.

“We wait,” said Gwen.


	7. Chapter 7

Arthur wished Gwen had given him a bit more warning before she shoved him out of the car because then he might have been level headed enough to think about grabbing his phone and his jacket. Of course, he really should have been more alert, more observant since he discovered that the threats were real but for the past day, he felt that he’d been walking through a fog, like his life was a dream. Morgana fussed in that acerbic manner of hers while his father acted like Arthur had been doing this on purpose. What for, he didn’t know. When he was a teenager, perhaps he’d have pulled off nonsense like this to get his father’s attention but now, the less attention from his father the better.

A light breeze made Arthur shiver. Kathy was the only one who looked warm, still in her chauffeur uniform. Always the silent type, she said nothing as she stood next to him. He was relieved she was alright. The last thing he needed was more deaths on his hands, he thought bitterly to himself.

“What now?”

“We wait,” said Gwen, as she squatted down and signalled them to do the same. Despite the circumstances, he couldn’t help but notice how her tight jeans stretched over her legs, legs that he wanted to run his hand over, and how her loose hair fell over her eyes. While her serious, prim getup was enough to give him fantasies that kept him up at night, he quite liked the softer look her loose hair gave her.

Impatiently, she shoved her hair away, then dug out a band from her pocket. Disappointed fluttered in Arthur when she pulled her hair back into a pony tail and tied it up. She barely looked at him, her eyes focused on their surroundings and her hand curled around something Arthur couldn’t quite make out. Maybe a gun. The reality that someone out in the darkness was trying to kill him slammed into his gut, sending a chill colder than the falling temperatures.

In silence, punctuated only by the rustle of branches and leaves in the cool, night breeze, their breaths and the thumping of his heart, they waited. Arthur couldn’t hear the car in the distance and he wondered if they had given up and left or if they were looking for them. If it was the latter, they were doing a great job at being quiet. At some point in time, he’d taken hold of Gwen’s hand, grateful that she didn’t pull away. Instead she’d glanced at him, then quirked a smile at him, as if assuring him all would be fine. Worryingly, he didn’t have trouble believing it as long as she was next to him.

“I think they should be gone.” Gwen withdrew her hand and stood slowly.

“We should go back to the main road,” said Arthur. “I’ve been in these woods before. In the dark, they are easy to get lost in.” He looked at the phone in her hand. “Even with a map.”

Gwen started to scroll through her phone, the light a beacon in the darkness. Arthur wrapped a hand around her phone, causing her to snatch her hand away and scowl at him.

“I know how to get to the main road.”

He didn’t quite know whether to be amused or annoyed at the look of disbelief she shot him.

“You used to hang around here as a kid,” said Kathy. “I remember driving you down, against your father’s orders.”

Arthur grinned. “You were always good to me.”

“We don’t really have time for nostalgia,” said Gwen. “Lead the way.”

She pressed something into his hand, folding his fingers around it. Arthur didn’t need to glance down to know it was a knife.

“Use it,” she said, so close to him, her breath caressed his cheek, making him tense even more. “I don’t want you dying on me.”

“Don’t worry,” said Arthur. “It’s only the people around me who die. Not me.”

“Your highness.” Kathy started but stopped when he shook his head.

Gwen turned curious eyes to them for a brief moment. “Come on. As quietly as we can.”

They crept towards the main road, every sound and movement amplified in the tense atmosphere, a far cry from the times when he played in the woods as a child. Still, it was familiar – the large tree with the broken branch that touched the ground marked the point where they needed to turn to get to the main road. Just as the road came into view, Gwen stopped.

“Wait here and let me check it out first.”

The knife gripped in his hand, he waited with Kathy as Gwen walked ahead. The wind was picking up and the temperature dropping. Even after their physical assertion, Arthur was feeling the cold. He rubbed his arms but it did little to warm him up.

“The rumours are true then,” said Kathy. “That you were getting death threats.”

Running his free hand through his hair, Arthur sighed. “I’m sorry. I should have told you. Merlin and father were determined to keep it quiet. Once we get out of here, you should probably take all that leave you have accumulated, spend some time with your children.”

“I plan to. I’m too old for such adventures.”

“It looks like they are gone. At least, the car is gone.” Gwen walked back to them, her gait a lot more relaxed than before. “Let’s go.”

Arthur didn’t know why he was surprised the limousine had been tampered with. Clearly, whoever was out to kill him had decided, possibly in a petulant fit, that since they failed to kill him, they would kill his transport instead.

He heard Gwen swear when Kathy relayed the bad news, and he looked at her. A frown marred her features and she was jabbing at her phone. Calling for help, he imagined.

“Mithian?” Turning slightly away, Gwen whispered into the phone. It was a short conversation and she turned back to them. “Elena is on her way to pick us up. Half an hour or so.”

“It’s getting colder. We can’t wait out here,” said Arthur, bouncing on his feet, hoping to warm up a little. “We should get into the limousine. At least, the wind can’t get to us there.”

“You and Kathy get in. I want to keep watch.” Her voice trembled a little and Arthur realised that she was probably as cold as he was. Her thin t-shirt probably wasn’t much protection.

“I’m going to try the car again,” said Kathy. Then pulling her jacket tighter across her body, she walked to the limousine then went in.

Gwen now had her arms crossed and she glanced at him. “You should go in as well.”

Back inside the limousine, Arthur grabbed the two jackets on the seat and his phone, then walked back to where Gwen was now perching on a fallen log. Her jacket was thin and Arthur didn’t think it would keep her warm. Still, he handed it to her and shrugged his on, before settling down on the log next to her.

“It’s cold. Stay in the car.”

Arthur stretched his legs out. “Not without you.”

He didn’t need to look at her to know she was looking disapprovingly at him, but she didn’t say anything. In front of them, the road stretched. It was funny how calm everything looked, nothing like the location of an attempted murder. His murder. He wondered if Elena and Mithian had made any progress on who was sending the letters. It occurred to him that this dinner was unplanned, so then how did anyone know he was here? Which reminded him that Annis would be expecting him for dinner.

When he finished the phone call, assuring Annis that nothing was amiss, he noticed that Gwen was rubbing her arms.

“Cold?” He moved closer to her.

“I’m fine.” But she shivered a little, then tilted her chin up, as if that would negate her lie. “You should –“

Arthur placed a finger on her lips. “If you’re going to sit out here in the cold, then I’ll sit with you.”

“I’m paid for this,” Gwen muttered against his finger. Most inappropriately, desire shot through Arthur and he moved his finger against her lips. Her eyes locked with his and she swallowed, but didn’t look away.

Taking his finger away, he tried to ease the sudden tension that sprung up between them. “Paid to catch a cold? I don’t think so.”

“If you want to suffer in the cold, I’m not going to stop you.” She turned her head and looked into the darkness. “Elena should be here soon.”

Then he felt her shiver again. Arthur took off his jacket, bracing himself for the cold. “You’re cold.”

She shook her head. “No.”

“Liar.” He slid even closer to her, so close that his arm brushed against hers. When she didn’t move away, Arthur put one arm across her shoulders and eased her closer to him, then slung his jacket over them. “Your jacket is useless.”

Gwen sat stiffly, even if she didn’t pull away. “I didn’t realise I was leaving the city tonight.”

“My fault,” said Arthur. He turned his head slightly and leaned into her. Gwen smelled of lavender and apples. Gently, he tucked her closer, and rubbed her arms. “Better?”

“Yes,” she agreed, then she relaxed a little. “Thank you.”

Arthur closed his eyes, willing himself not to turn more and press his lips into her hair. This time, his thumping heart had nothing to do with almost being killed. “It’s the least I can do for the person who has saved my life twice.”

“I get paid for it.” But this time, her words lacked any heat.

* * *

“Tell me about the accident.” Best to get straight to the point, thought Gwen. “You clearly think it’s the reason behind all these attempts on your life.”

Arthur’s thumb, which had been rubbing the most distracting circles on her shoulder, stilled. “It was all in the newspapers.”

“It’s almost like you want to be killed. You know that whatever deal you made also included the suppression of most details.”

“Let’s make a deal. I tell you something about the accident, you tell me something about yourself – something few people know.” His thumb started to move again, sending shivers, which had nothing to do with the cold air, through her.

Gwen moved a little. Being this close to the prince was not helping her keep alert or sensible. “There’s no reason for you to know anything about me.”

“I want to know you better,” he said, in that terrible low voice that made Gwen want to throw all caution to the wind, turn her head and meet his lips with hers.

Instead, she turned to glare at him. “We’re not on a date. And we’re trying to stop you from getting killed.”

He was so close to her that she could feel his laugh. Then his hand, warm despite the cold night, slid over hers, his fingers slotting far too easily between hers. “Indulge me. I am a crown prince who almost got killed.”

“We’ll see.” She straightened herself, trying not to yield to his tempting body heat. “Did you speak to Lord Odin after the accident?”

“After the accident, everything was a mess. My father took over. He arranged the deal – everything. Then once the funeral was over, Lord Odin shut himself in his country home and no one has seen him since.” Arthur let out a sigh. “I think he couldn’t deal with Devon’s death.”

“He had another son,” said Gwen.

Arthur nodded. “He did. Trent. I’ve seen him now and then during all those fancy parties we’re forced to attend.”

“What are things like between you two?”

“We rarely interact, as you can imagine. But, he’s never said anything about the accident, or expressed any anger. He sent me flowers while I was recovering.”

Arthur’s voice was flat, his body tense and from the way he gripped her hand, Gwen could tell it was difficult to talk about. That was the only reason she said what she did. “When I was in high school, I got suspended for fighting.”

“Fighting? Tell me more.” From her shoulder, Arthur’s hand moved to touch her hair, curling her pony tail around his fingers.

It had been Gwen’s most humiliating moment and the moment she’d realised that if she didn’t get a grip on her emotions, she was going to end up in trouble and unable to look after her brother. “My brother was being bullied by a group of boys in school and even though I told them to stop it, they didn’t.”

“And so you beat them up?” Humour tinged his voice and he relaxed, leaning into her, his hand practically massaging the back of her neck.

“Something like that. I got caught, of course, and suspended. My teacher spoke up for me, then told me to enrol in martial art classes to develop discipline.”

“And that put you on the road to becoming my bodyguard,” said Arthur. “Can’t say I’m sorry it happened.”

Even as she rolled her eyes at Arthur’s words, she smiled. The hand that had been stroking her neck moved to cup her face, his thumb barely rubbing across her bottom lip. Even in the dim light, Gwen could see the desire in Arthur’s eyes and although, part of her brain told her break their eye contact and move away, Gwen found that she couldn’t bring herself to move. His palm was warm against her cheek. He moved closer, their noses bumping, then he waited.

She closed her eyes.

When he said her name, it sounded like it was torn out of him. Then, his lips touched hers. It was such a light touch that Gwen wondered if, in her heated state, she’d imagined it, but then his lips were on hers again, more demanding. She yielded, sinking into his kiss, enjoying the taste and feel of him. Fantasies that came, unbidden at night, when she was exhausted, were now coming true and the reality of his kisses trumped whatever her brain conjured up.

“Guinevere.”

The kiss ended and Arthur pressed another on the corner of her lip before resting his forehead against hers. Gwen opened her eyes, letting them roam around his face, taking in his lashes and cheekbones. He was a very good looking man and he was looking at her as if she was the most desirable person on Earth.

Pulling away, Arthur took a deep breath. “I went to see Lord Odin once, after the accident. My father didn’t know. He let me in, you know, and in the calmest voice I’ve ever heard, told me that I’d destroyed his life, that I was a waste of space and that I should have been the one who died. He’s not wrong. I’ve not actually done anything much with my life.”

And suddenly, Gwen understood why Arthur seemed so uncaring about this whole thing. Then, she got angry. Angry that he was wasting his life this way, angry that she was working hard to protect him when he didn’t care and angry that she was having the most inappropriate feelings for a man like him. Jerking herself from his hold, ignoring that his jacket fell to the ground, she twisted to face him. She jabbed him in the shoulder.

“Ow! What –“

“Look, I know you feel guilty – that you caused the accident and that you survived. But that’s the reality. Devon isn’t going to return from the dead. Giving up and letting some mad man assassinate you isn’t going to make anything better for anyone. You have a chance to live. Do something with your life.”

Arthur stared at her, then stood up, bending to pick up his jacket with an angry jerk. “You don’t –“

The sound of an approaching vehicle made Gwen scurry up from the log, yanking on Arthur to pull him further into the woods. Arthur stumbled into her and his hands grabbed her waist to steady himself, his hard body pressing against her. A shiver went through her and Gwen wrenched herself away from him.

A bright pink car drove into view.

“Elena,” said Gwen in relief. Quickly, she made her way back onto the main road, slipping her gun back into its holder.

Whatever intimacy they had shared under the cover of darkness just a few minutes earlier had completely dissipated by the time they got into Vivian’s car. Kathy sat squashed in the middle and Gwen stared out of the window, barely answering the questions Elena peppered her with. Guilt gnawed at her stomach. Arthur had opened up to her and instead of being supportive, she’d lashed out at him because she was too shaken by the kiss and the emotions it churned in her. From where she sat, she leaned slightly forward to look at him. He sat straight, his head turned away.

The ride back was painfully slow and when they finally pulled up at the palace where a harried Merlin stood, Gwen slumped into her seat in relief.

“Thank you,” said Arthur as he got out of the car. His voice held none of the warmth or affection it did before.

From the window, Gwen watched as Merlin and Arthur walked through the large doors and into the palace. You don’t need the prince to like you, she told herself firmly as the doors closed behind them.

“Are you alright, Gwen?” Elena twisted to look at Gwen.

“I’m just tired. It’s been a tiring day.” She closed her eyes, annoyed when her mind insisted on replaying the kiss then her outburst, over and over again.

“Mithian and I have some news, but I think it can wait till tomorrow. Get some rest. I’ll wake you when we reach your place.”

Gwen smiled faintly. “Thanks.”

Back in her apartment, after a long, hot shower, Gwen stared at her phone. The only way she could contact Arthur was through Merlin and what was she going to say to him anyway? I’m sorry. I think I might be too attracted to you so I freaked? Gwen tossed her phone onto her bed, then sank into it, rubbing her face. She was a professional and professionals didn’t have inappropriate crushes on their clients. She had to pull herself together. With that thought, Gwen closed her eyes, tried to sleep and not dream of royal men who made her feel too much with kisses and ridiculous flirting.


	8. Chapter 8

Arthur knew he was sulking as he threw himself into the oversized armchair, then took a gulp of the beer he’d poured for himself.

“I suppose it’ll be too much to ask you to stop scowling.”

As Merlin walked into the room, Arthur rolled his eyes and took another gulp from the beer. “I cannot believe that you cancelled everything from my schedule, and that my father allowed you to.”

“Thank Morgana. She was quite willing to pick up your slack.”

Arthur drained his glass. “Slack that there wouldn’t have been if you didn’t take it upon yourself to clear my schedule.”

“Have you forgotten that someone has been trying to kill you?” Merlin emptied his own glass, stood and took Arthur’s glass, setting them on the side table. He glanced at his watch. “Gwen will be here soon.”

Hurt and bitterness threatened to rise, but with a ruthlessness honed from years of hiding his emotions, Arthur shoved it back down. “I told you to deal with Gwen on your own. In fact, seeing that my schedule is completely empty now, I’m going back to bed.”

As he stood, Arthur tried his damnest not to think about Gwen, or her prim bun, or those shirt and pants combinations that were far too sexy for something that was supposed to be utilitarian. And he most definitely didn’t want to remember what she thought of him.

“Are you going to tell me what happened last night?”

Arthur stopped, his back to Merlin. “I almost got killed, that’s what happened.”

He heard Merlin sigh. “You know what I mean. Between you and Gwen. I thought you two were getting along.”

“Nothing much. She thinks that I’m a waste of space, but what’s new?” He shrugged, hopefully nonchalantly. The last thing he needed was Merlin on his case about this as well. “It’s not like I care what she thinks.”

“She’s not a mind reader,” said Merlin.

Arthur pushed his door open. “I know. What is your point?”

“If you never take off your mask, she’ll never know you.”

“There’s no mask, Merlin. You keep thinking I am a better person than I am. But I’m not.” Arthur turned around, letting his door close behind him. “I’m exactly who Odin said I was and it’s good that Gwen knows that.”

A knock interrupted them, and a hesitant George announced Gwen’s arrival. Arthur let his hand drop from the door as his heart started to pound. It would look too cowardly to dash into his room now. Taking a breath, he prepared himself for the disappointment, or even disgust he would inevitably see in her eyes.

As his eyes met hers, it was worse than he’d expected. Gwen looked coolly back at him, as if nothing that had happened last night mattered. An unexpected surge of anger shot through Arthur and when she nodded at him, he scowled at her and walked over to the bar and poured himself another drink. Then without a word, he threw himself into his armchair, refusing to join Gwen and Merlin at the sofa. Through narrowed eyes, he watched as Gwen pulled out a folder, then with her usual care, she took out various sheets of paper and laid them neatly on the coffee table. Merlin, his arms resting on his thighs, leaned forward, so close to Gwen that their dark hair seemed to merge together. Her fingers moved on the papers and she said something, causing Merlin to nod.

Sipping his drink, Arthur stared silently at them, letting jealousy burn in his gut. He knew it was completely irrational – for one thing, he didn’t care about Gwen – but no amount of drink would wash the feelings away.

“What news have you brought?” Arthur asked curtly when they finally stopped their discussion.

Merlin stood, concern written all over his face. “How well do you know Sefa?”

"As well as you, I imagine,” said Arthur. “You don’t think that –“

“After we checked the background of all your staff in the household department, we narrowed it down to five of them.” Gwen’s voice was as cool as her expression and it grated..

Arthur tore his eyes from her. “Who are the others?”

Merlin rattled off a list of names and it became obvious why Sefa was the main suspect. Arthur had always known that she had a fondness for him, and learning that she’d been Trent’s friend in secondary school and still kept in contact with him only made her even more suspicious.

“What do you want to do?”

With a sigh, Arthur stood. “Don’t tell my father. I’ll talk to her.”

“I don’t think she’s behind the attempts on your life but she definitely knows about it,” said Gwen.

He looked at Gwen. “You should be here when I talk to her.”

“Why? Merlin can –“

“Because you can ask the important questions,” snapped Arthur. “And don’t forget, we’re paying you.”

Her lips pressed together, probably to stop herself from snapping back at him, and she nodded.

Merlin darted a look at them. “Well then. Sefa should be somewhere in the palace. How about I go fetch her now and the two of you can work out whatever problem you have in the meantime.”

“There’s nothing to work out,” said Arthur but of course, Merlin ignored him and walked out of his suite.

On the sofa, Gwen studied her papers but it was obvious that she was trying to ignore him. From where he stood, he let his eyes roam all over her. She was, not unexpectedly, wearing her usual black and white ensemble, the one that made him want to slowly undo every button, one by one, kissing each inch of bare skin it revealed. Her back was straight and her long legs crossed at the ankles and tucked to the side. With her hair, once again, tied tightly into a bun, she looked remote and cold. But Arthur knew better as his mind traitorously reminded him of the kiss they shared the night before, how perfectly she fitted in his arms, how inviting her skin felt under his fingers, how her soft sighs was more arousing than anything he’d ever experienced before. The temptation to walk over to where she was and kiss her again, despite her obvious disgust with him, was overwhelming and utterly foolish, so he took another gulp of his drink, then wondered if he should get a refill.

His phone rang, startling both him and Gwen from their thoughts. Quickly turning away from her so she wouldn’t suspect he’d been staring, he answered the call.

“Leon.”

“You need to come to the camp this week.” No greeting, no how are you, just a directive to the crown prince. Arthur rolled his eyes.

“No.”

“That guy from the city board will be there for the dinner. And rumours are he’s not keen on giving the land to us.”

Placing his glass down on the nearest surface, Arthur ran a hand through his hair and started to pace. “Selling. We’re buying the bloody piece of land not asking for a charitable donation. Maybe we should look for another piece of land –“

“If you turn up at the camp, you can charm the city board into selling you the land,” interrupted Leon. “I thought this meant something to you.”

Arthur darted a glance at Gwen who was back studying all those papers. “Don’t do this.”

“This land is important to our expansion plans and I know that you’ve been more than generous with the funding, but you can’t always throw money at everything.” Over the phone, he heard Leon sigh. “Just think about it alright? You don’t even have to stay the whole weekend.”

“Fine. I’ll think about it.” Arthur hung up and slipped his phone into his pocket. Gwen and Merlin’s words echoed in his head. He thought of Merlin telling him he was hiding. He thought of Gwen saying he should do something with his life. “Gwen. I hope your weekend is free. We’re going camping.”

 

* * *

 

Not five minutes ago, Arthur was drinking and scowling at her from the corner of the room, like she’d hurt him somehow. Now, he was standing there, looking down at her and informing her that they were going to spend the weekend camping. It wasn’t the command that was making her nails dig into her palm but how dismissively he was speaking to her, which was ridiculous because she was just his employee. But as ridiculous as it was, Gwen found it hard to stem her annoyance and disappointment with the way he was acting, as if they were strangers.

That morning, as Mithian had laid out, in nicely colour coded notes, her short list of suspects, Gwen was gripped with the realisation that she really didn’t want to see Arthur again, not after she spent a sleepless night in bed having the most explicit dreams of him. But Elena had plans with Vivian and Mithian needed to bring her elderly father for a check-up, leaving her the only one available to deliver the information to Arthur. Later, in the car Merlin had sent to pick her up, she ran through various ways of apologising for her outburst the night before. It wasn’t her place to tell him how to live his life and as a professional, the last thing she should be doing was allowing her apparently out of control hormones and feelings to affect her job.

But when she’d stepped into his suite and saw him, all closed up and drinking, her own anger at him for a multitude of reasons rose and she forgot the apologies she’d planned. If he was going to stand at the corner and glower at her, she was going to sit there and ignore the petulant fool.

“Camping? Merlin said he cleared your schedule.” The relief that she wasn’t going to have to go out with Arthur as his fake girlfriend anymore had been great.

Arthur shrugged. “He’s not my boss.”

Gwen was about to point out that he was being incredibly selfish again and risking his life, and those around him, unnecessarily when the main door opened and Merlin entered. For a moment, Gwen thought he was alone, until he took a step to the side.

The young girl, hands clasped in front of the palace uniform she wore, must be Sefa. Her head was bowed and she stood in the doorway, unmoving.

“Sefa,” said Arthur, the cold mask he was wearing disappearing and he sounded warm and concerned. He gestured to his dining table. “Take a seat. Gwen and Merlin, you’ll join us?”

Sefa’s head lifted and Gwen could see that despite her posture, she wasn’t afraid. Arthur walked over to the table and sat down opposite Sefa. Seeing no other choice, Gwen went over, sitting herself next to Merlin. And for the next half an hour, Gwen saw a side of Arthur she’d never seen before.

He was kind, even sympathetic to Sefa, yet firm, demanding answers that she was clearly reluctant to give. Arthur clearly didn’t need her to stay for the questioning and she wondered if he’d insisted merely to annoy her.

Slowly, the story, or as much as Sefa knew, was revealed and while Arthur showed no obvious reaction to the confirmation that Trent had indeed placed a hit on him, Gwen could see the tension in his eyes and the sudden urge to comfort him hit her, so she picked up a pen and started scribbling on the notebook in front of her in case she did.

“I assume I am to be fired,” said Sefa.

Arthur ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “I wish you had come to me the moment you thought Trent was serious about getting me killed.”

“He is my friend. I couldn’t betray him.” Sefa lowered her voice. “Even if I did like you a lot.”

Merlin stood. “You should gather your things. I’ll get security to walk you out.”

The moment Sefa and Merlin left the suite, Arthur slumped into his seat, tipping his head back to stare at the ceiling.

“At least we know who is behind all the attacks and why. Now, we can go to the police and let them deal with it.”

He continued staring at the ceiling. “We’ll definitely go to the police but Sefa isn’t going to testify against Trent, and it’ll be our word against his.”

"That's true.”

“You know what I hope?” Arthur straightened up and looked at her. “I hope Sefa tells him we know and he realises that it’s a terrible idea and stops. Then we can just move on from this.”

It was the tiredness and worry in his eyes that caused Gwen to unthinkingly place her hand over his. Immediately, he turned his hand over and closed his fingers around her hand. She looked at him and he gave her a wry smile.

“You were right, you know. Last night.”

Gwen blinked at the sudden change in conversation, then shook her head as the apologies she’d prepared came to mind. “I had no right to –“

He squeezed her hand. “No. You could have been nicer about it, but then I might not have listened then. But you were right, and so is Merlin, only please don’t ever tell Merlin I said he was right. That kind of information is a weapon in Merlin’s hands.”

“What were we right about?”

“I let the accident stop me from doing a lot of things.” He let go of her hand and started to draw patterns on her palm instead, the light touch sending shivers through her. “I started a charity a few years after the accident, like for penance. But I never really got involved in it. I just gave it lots of money and hired people to run it.”

“You started a charity?” Gwen shifted in her seat. Now she felt even worse for accusing him of doing nothing with his life.

He grinned. “Albion Hearts. Have you heard of it?”

She nodded, feeling slightly unsettled by the revelation. Setting up a charity was not something people who didn’t care did. “It’s the charity that helps at-risk kids through adventure camps. Is that why we’re going camping this weekend?”

“Yes. I told myself before that it was enough to give money, but Leon – he’s the guy in charge of it all – thinks I can do more. Use my position to do more.”

“But you didn’t until now.” The movement of Arthur’s finger on her palm was hypnotic and if she wasn’t so interested in Arthur’s charity, she might have found it more difficult to focus. “What changed?”

Arthur smiled slightly and he tore his eyes from her to look at some spot over her shoulder. “What you said about me doing something with my life. And earlier this afternoon, Merlin was going on again about hiding behind the accident. But mostly, it’s Trent.”

“Trent.”

“The accident was 5 years ago and if Sefa is right, Trent has been obsessing over it all this time.” His finger stopped moving and Gwen quickly moved her hand from the table. “I knew Trent. He was bright, ambitious and had so many plans for his future. But he let it all go to plot against me? It’s such a waste.” A long sigh left Arthur and he rubbed his face. “And when Sefa was describing him, it was like looking into the mirror.”

“He wasted his life on revenge while you’re wasting yours on guilt?”

“That sounds about right.”

Arthur was looking at her and in response, her heartbeat sped up. This was getting too cosy, too intimate for Gwen. She was his bodyguard, not his confidante and she shouldn’t be sitting here, around this large, mahogany dining table listening to the crown prince deal with his issues. She shouldn’t even care about his issues.

Straightening in her seat, she sucked in a breath. “What do you want to do now?”

“Now?” Arthur reached out and cupped her face, his thumb stroking her cheek. He leaned towards her, so close that his warm breath fluttered against her cheek. “I want to kiss you, sweetpea.”

Gwen closed her eyes as she ran through all the reasons kissing Arthur was a bad idea. “There’s no reason to,” she said, the words barely making it out from her throat.

“Tell me no,” he said. “Tell me you don’t want to kiss me.”

Her head moved slightly, turning towards Arthur. She kept her eyes closed.

His first touch was a light brush, his lips a whisper against hers. Then he moved his hand, slipping his fingers into her hair and loosening her bun. Gwen leaned into him, her lips parted, wanting more than that teasing touch. She could feel him smiling against her lips, then she felt him nibble her lower lip. Desire throbbed in her and he hadn’t even properly kissed her yet.

“Gwen,” he groaned. “You don’t know how much I –“

The door to the suite slammed open and the haze that had enveloped Gwen the moment Arthur touched her cheek cleared. Gwen pushed herself away from Arthur, her chair scrapping loudly against the floor as embarrassment flooded her.

In the doorway, Merlin looked at her, then at Arthur. The most annoying smile spread across his face.

“Practising self-defence, were we? Some tongue wrestling? Boots -”

“Shut up, Merlin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick thank you to all of you who have been reading this. :)


	9. Chapter 9

Merlin was less than pleased when Arthur informed him about the camping trip, going on about how Trent was still plotting his death and how Arthur always had to choose the worst time to make changes in his life and so on. Arthur ignored him. Merlin was also less than supportive of Arthur’s interest in Gwen – something about Arthur’s poor reputation with women, inappropriateness and so on. Arthur ignored him as well. It was easy when he was buoyed by the idea of both meeting the children his charity had been working with and spending a whole weekend with Gwen.

He let his mind wander to Gwen, and he smiled. Sure, after that interrupted kiss, she’d immediately kept her distance from him, completely professional as they discussed what to do next. Much to Arthur’s delight, Gwen grudgingly agreed that Arthur still required her services until Trent was stopped.

“The police have spoken to Sefa and I believe they should be speaking to Trent and his elusive father by now.” Merlin strolled into Arthur’s living room, without so much as a knock on the door.

“You really need to learn to knock,” said Arthur as he flipped through an Albion Heart brochure. Leon sent him photos regularly of the camp but Arthur had never paid much attention to them before. Some of the activities looked rather dangerous for little kids, but what did he know about kids?

“The police doubt they are going to be able to do anything about Trent unless he breaks down and confesses. Sefa refuses to cooperate and well, the letters are vague and messy. Nothing truly incriminating. But hopefully, with the police confronting Trent, he’ll back off.” Merlin flopped onto the sofa next to Arthur and Arthur could feel Merlin’s eyes on him. “Do you really have to go for this camping thing?”

“The city mayor will be there. I need to get him to believe that leasing the land to us is a better idea than building some large, shopping mall.”

“I thought it was a residential building?”

Arthur waved his hand. “Same thing. Anyway, I’m sure Gwen and her team will check all the escape routes and the people working there. It’ll be fine. I have faith in Gwen.”

“That’s because you’re not thinking with your head,” muttered Merlin. “Why is it, when I want you to be the lazy, couldn’t care less person you were just a few days ago, you have to morph into this get-things-done person? Never mind. I know why.”

“Why?”

“Because you’ve been put on this earth to torture me, that’s why. Now, promise me, you won’t sleep with Gwen.”

Dropping the brochure onto the table, Arthur scowled at Merlin. “I am going camping to learn more about my charity, not to seduce Gwen. Her company is just a bonus. And anyway, I thought you like her.”

“I do like her. I also like her undistracted from her job,” said Merlin as he lifted his legs and rested them on the table.

Arthur sighed. “That, according to Morgana, is a very expensive piece of furniture. Although, you should know that seeing that I heard rumours about you and my sister spending time together.”

“I had to pass her your schedule.”

“You’re not meeting my eyes, you liar. I don’t want you as my brother-in-law, ok?”

Merlin shoved him. “And I don’t want you distracting Gwen.”

“Please, Gwen is more professional than that.” Then he grinned. “Once this whole murder attempt thing is over, I’ll focus on distracting her.”

Merlin cast him a dirty look. “You two are adults, so I’m not going to say anything. Morgana and I are adults too, by the way.”

Arthur covered his ears. “Can’t hear you. Also, why are you sitting here relaxing? My bag needs to be packed.”

* * *

“Camping huh?” Mithian typed furiously on the laptop she’d brought to Gwen’s house. Apparently, Gwen’s computer wasn’t secured enough or something for Mithian to conduct the background checks. “When was the last time you went camping?”

“Long ago enough that I can’t remember. I should charge them extra for this.” In her bedroom, Gwen tossed her toiletries into her now overflowing bag and glared at it, hoping the glare would cause her things to shrink in fear and fit into the bag. Or she could bring her fancy luggage that she’d bought after a particularly lucrative job, but the idea of dragging her gorgeous green suitcase through mud and leaves made her heart sink. She could buy another bag for camping, she supposed, with that extra charge she was going to tack onto the bill.

“Gwen? Are you listening to me?”

With a muttered curse, Gwen gave the toiletries a shove. It sank in for a while, then popped up. “Yeah! I’m listening.”

"There're two people here who have ties to Trent. The rest appear to be clean. Not that you can be too careful. You will be careful right?”

Before Gwen could answer, there was a long clatter, then the familiar voice of Elena’s floated in. “Hello! I’m here with maps, donuts and coffee. And a stray I found on the way here.”

There was more clatter, Mithian’s hushed voice and the sound of papers. Giving her bag one more shove, Gwen shook her head when it refused to cooperate, and walked into her living room, where Mithian was juggling three cups of coffee as Elena laid out large maps onto her dining table. A box of donuts balanced on one of the chairs, one donut clearly eaten because there was dusting of sugar on the chair, and Mithian’s laptop had been haphazardly dumped onto her sofa, which was already overflowing with clothes that hadn’t been ironed and books that hadn’t been read. She really should insist they use the office space they were paying rent for their meetings, not her apartment.

"Hey sis!"

“Elyan!” Gwen crossed the living room and pulled him into a hug. “What are you doing here?”

“I can’t visit my favourite sister?” He brushed a kiss across her cheek. “Actually, I have good news.”

Gwen raised an eyebrow. “You found hidden treasure and are going to pay me back the money you owe?”

“Haha. No.” Elyan took a look around. “Mithian. Wait, if Mithian and Elena are here, that means you’re in the middle of a job.”

Elena took a coffee from Mithian. “Yup. The royal one. Your sister is going camping with the prince.”

“Camping with the prince! Sounds fun.”

Gwen smacked him on the shoulder. “What good news did you have for me?”

“I got a job. It’s –“

With a squeal, Gwen flung her arms around him again. Then she took a step back and eyed him warily. “This doesn’t have anything to do with stocks and shares right? Or investments?”

“No. I’ve learnt my lesson. I swear. No more dabbling in the stock market.”

“And no more borrowing from sketchy dudes who run a bank from a bar,” said Mithian sharply.

“No more of that,” agreed Elyan. “It’s an administrative job, nothing fantastic, but it’s a job.”

Gwen smiled and hugged him yet again. “Good! I’m glad for you. Take a seat and tell me all about it!”

With a quick push, Gwen cleared some space on her sofa and gestured to Elyan to sit. While Mithian and Elena wandered into her kitchen to give them some semblance of privacy, Gwen settled down next to Elyan. It’d been a while since she had a conversation with Elyan that didn’t revolve around his debts and it felt good.

“Have you finished scouting the area?” Elyan had left and Gwen looked down at the creased maps that Elena had spread out on the table. Mithian stood by her side, her head cocked to the side. There was a lot of trees on the map.

"Yup," said Elena as she ran her palm across the map, then straightened up, and crossed her arms. “Nature and wildlife always make things complicated. How insistent is he about going for this camping trip?”

Gwen sighed. "Merlin says he’s being very stubborn about it.”

"Power," said Mithian with a shake of her head. "You always get your way."

“It can’t be that far from civilisation,” said Gwen.

“It isn’t. Actually, if you look here, it’s near that restaurant-cum-bed and breakfast place you and Arthur went. Just a 20 minutes walk away.” Elena then launched into a long, detailed explanation about the campsite and the surrounding areas.

“You’ll put this all in my phone, right?” asked Gwen when Elena finally stopped, feeling slightly dizzy with all that information. “By this time, tomorrow, I won’t remember 80% of this.”

Elena picked the box of donuts up and sat on the chair. “Of course. You should study it though. So, on to more interesting business – do you think the prince is going to make a move on you during the camp?”

Mithain pulled out another chair and sat, resting her chin on her steepled fingers. “I’m sure Gwen will be completely professional no matter what that flirt does. And why would Gwen even be interested in the prince? He’s such an ambitious-less bum.”

“Oh I don’t know. Gwen?” Elena looked up at Gwen and grinned.

“As Mithian said, I’m going to be completely professional no matter what he does. And unfortunately, being his fake girlfriend means I have to put up with his flirting.” Liar, a small voice whispered in her head. You enjoy kissing the prince far too much. Inwardly, she scowled at that voice.

“You’re no fun,” said Elena. “Imagine having an affair with the crown prince. It’s so romantic, like Cinderella. Sort of. I think his sister is a lot more attractive, but that’s just me.”

“Gwen is far too sensible to get embroiled in relationships that won’t end well. Right, Gwen?”

Gwen nodded. “I’m very sensible. And Arthur is not a sensible choice. Not now, not ever.”

She wasn’t sure if she was trying to convince her friends or herself.

By the time Gwen woke up the next morning, the morning of the camp, she was feeling good. After Elena and Mithian had left, she had not only managed to pack everything she needed into her duffel bag, she had also convinced herself that whatever strange feelings she was feeling for Arthur was merely a result of stress, over her brother and over her business. But now, with Elyan well on his way on the straight and narrow path, Gwen could relax a little.

The sleek, black limousine pulled up in front of her place and Arthur’s new driver stepped out to help her with her bag. She slid onto the now familiar leather seat and closed her eyes as they made their way to the palace.

The door swung open and Arthur entered.

“Hello sweetpea,” said Arthur.

And even though her heart was playing an irregular beat, Gwen managed a roll of her eyes. “Hello honeybun.”

His returning grin only made her insides lurch.

* * *

Arthur liked the feel of Gwen’s hand in his, he realised, as they walked dutifully around the campsite led by Sharon, the camp director who could barely contain her excitement that she was showing Arthur around. Much to Arthur’s amusement, Sharon stumbled over her words and occasionally squeaked as she talked.

He was less amused by the media who had gathered and was frantically taking photos of him and Gwen. Lights flashed non-stop into their faces and the reporters shouted questions that them. Gwen didn’t appear too fazed by it and Arthur felt a tug of pride, even as he tucked her closer to him.

“They’ll be good publicity,” murmured Gwen as she leaned into him.

“I know,” sighed Arthur. “But that doesn’t mean they aren’t a pain.”

He could feel Gwen’s laughter and he dropped her hand, slipping his arm around her waist instead so he pull her flush against him. She still wore her usual white shirt but instead of her black pants, she wore jeans that moulded to her legs and hips, as prim as she always was. Arthur never knew primness was such a turn on. Impulsively, he pressed a kiss on the top of her head, taking in the smell of her shampoo. More flash lights went off and Arthur knew that photo was going to hit the internet soon. Thankfully the media was kept outside the camp and once they made it past the main entrance, the chaos subsided.

They toured the bunks, the bathrooms, the rock wall and several other places. At each place, Sharon excitedly explained how they helped instil discipline and responsibility in the children. When Arthur had proposed the idea of the camp and worked with Leon to get it up and running, he never quite imagined what it would be like. For the two years since he started the organisation, it has been nothing more than a pile of paperwork and monthly reports to him, with the vague, distant knowledge that some children were benefitting from it. Now, seeing the organisation he had a hand in setting up, it was as if it suddenly felt real to Arthur.

He had done this.

“This is a great place,” said Gwen, as if she could read his mind. “I guess you’re doing more than nothing in your life.”

There was an apology hidden in her words and Arthur looked down at her, taking in the now far too familiar face, the eyes that threatened to drown him and lips that he very much wanted to kiss. Her hair was, of course, swept up in a bun, and he itched to undo it.

“Thank you,” he said then tore his eyes away as Sharon launched into a lengthy description of the archery range.

As they moved through the campsite, Arthur enjoyed Sharon’s chatter. She was enthusiastic and warm and seemed very much to care about Albion Hearts. Yet, Arthur also had the feeling that Gwen didn’t like Sharon very much. Every now and then, he would catch Gwen watching Sharon, a furrow in her brows.

In the middle of the tour, Sharon excused herself to deal with something, and left them at the edge of a large field where they watched a bunch of kids scream, run around and toss a ball. It didn’t look like any game Arthur could recognise but the kids were having fun and presumably, they were learning something from it.

“Are you the prince?” A young girl with her arm in a cast looked up at him. “Mr Leon said the prince would be visiting us today.”

Arthur stuck out a hand. “Hello. I am indeed the prince. This is Gwen. And what’s your name?”

“Rachel.” She squinted up at him, hesitating a while before she placed her hand in his. Her handshake was surprisingly firm. “You don’t look like a prince. Where is your crown?”

He smiled. “I didn’t bring it today.”

“Is Gwen your girlfriend?”

“She is.” said Arthur, flashing Gwen a quick grin. In return, she shook her head at him, probably barely repressing the urge to either roll her eyes at him or kick him. His grin widened. “What happened to your arm?”

Rachel shrugged. “It got hurt when Keith pushed me off the stairs so now I can’t play with the others. It was an accident.”

“Who’s Keith?” asked Arthur, feeling the urge to hunt down the boy and give him a piece of his mind.

“He’s one of the boys at camp. He apologised and Mr Leon made him do clean up every night as punishment.” Rachel didn’t seem the least put out at being made to sit out the game. “But it’s good because now I get to talk to you. Can we take a selfie? Then I can put it up online and everyone would be jealous of me.”

Arthur glanced at Gwen, who smirked at him. “Uh, sure I guess.”

With her other arm, Rachel quickly whipped out her mobile phone. With a chuckle, Gwen moved away and Arthur bent down. Immediately, Rachel pressed her face next to his, lifted her phone and yelled smile.

“Can we have one with your girlfriend too?” Rachel asked. “That would be really cool.”

Arthur looked at Gwen.

“Sure,” said Gwen and she moved to the other side of Rachel.

“Alright, thanks! Bye!” Her eyes glued to her phone and her fingers flying across the screen, Rachel hurried away.

“Huh,” said Arthur. “I feel used.”

“I fear she was only interested in you for the popularity points.”

With a shake of his head, Arthur sighed. “Most people are.”

“Perils of being a prince,” said Gwen lightly. “It’s a good thing I’m not in it for the popularity. In fact, no longer being in the newspapers can’t come too soon.”

“Was it my extensive charms then that made you take the job?”

“Oh yes, honeybun. You were so charming that first meeting. How could a girl like me resist those scowls? Every dirty look that you shot me made me want you more.”

“You flatter me so, sweetpea,” laughed Arthur. Then he took her hand again. She didn’t pull away.

They watched the game for a while more until Sharon reappeared and resumed the tour.

“And this is the general hall where we hold our mass assemblies. As you can see, it’s being decorated for the farewell party this evening.” Sharon peered up at him. “You’ll be attending it, right?”

Arthur nodded. “Gwen and I will be there.”

Leon finally turned up as he and Gwen were looking at the decoration that were being done by some of the camp leaders. Arthur thought that they were all great kids and while they seemed a little overwhelmed by his presence at first, they were soon chatting happily with Arthur and Gwen.

“Leon!” Arthur grinned when the tall man stepped into the hall. “For a moment I thought that you were running this in absentia. Let me introduce you to my girlfriend, Gwen.”

“Gwen. Good to meet you.” Leon turned to Arthur and slapped him on the back. “I’m glad you decided to come. Thank you. Like what you’ve seen so far?”

Arthur nodded. “It’s brilliant. You’ve done a great job.”

“Wouldn’t have been able to do it without your money. But as you can see, demand is increasing and this site is too small and too inaccessible for many of the children in the city. But come, let me show you to your cabin.”

All the cabins lined the edge of the camp. The children stayed in bunks together with the camp leaders while Leon explained that the cabin he and Gwen would be in was for the camp commander, usually.

“It’s our best cabin,” said Leon with a grin. “You two should be pretty comfortable here. It’s almost romantic with nothing but nature surrounding you.”

Gwen raised her eyebrows, shook her head then picked up her duffel bag that had been left outside the door and headed into the cabin.

“Not very friendly, is she?”

“It’s been a long day.” Arthur slapped Leon on the shoulder. “The camp is looking good, Leon, and we’ll see you at the party later. When is the mayor coming?”

“Just for the party,” said Leon. “He’ll leave after. See you later.”

Arthur closed the door and turned around. It was then he noticed the large bed that dominated the room. His eyes moved to where Gwen was putting something into the wardrobe and his thoughts took a wild turn away from helping children and camping.


	10. Chapter 10

Do not think about sharing the bed, Gwen told herself firmly. Because that wasn’t going to happen and since it was unlikely that the crown prince would agree to sleeping on the floor, she would have to.

“Cosy place,” said Arthur as he sat on the bed. “Bed’s not that comfortable.”

“That’s because you’re spoiled.” Against her better judgement, Gwen sat on the bed too. “It feels fine to me.”

Arthur grinned at her. “You should try my bed. It’s many times more comfortable.”

She swung her leg so it connected with his, then stood, walking to the window which overlooked the woods which surrounded the camp. The camp was in a lovely area and she wondered why Arthur was so keen to move it to the middle of the city.

“Accessibility,” said Arthur when she asked. He was still on the bed, bouncing slightly. “This place is great and we’re going to keep it but we need somewhere where the kids can come and not have to stay overnight. A lot of their families need them home. With a city place, we can work with more children.”

“You’ve put a lot of thought into this.”

“I may not have done a lot for the organisation but I wasn’t just throwing money at them,” he said quietly.

Gwen walked back to the bed to stand in front of Arthur. “I didn’t mean for it to sound that way. You’ve done a lot more than I thought.”

“That’s a fairly low bar, isn’t it?” He stood up from the bed and was suddenly far too close to her. They weren’t touching yet Gwen could feel the heat from his skin and she steeled herself not to move closer. And then, he was touching her, his skin against her, the back of his hand light against her cheek. Her heart somehow managed to both stop and beat harder. Arthur’s voice came out in a low whisper. “So, in your expert opinion, do you think I’m in danger here?”

She swallowed, taking a step back and Arthur’s hand dropped as he gave her a wry smile. “Sharon worked for Trent’s company before. Of course, this may not mean anything. I believe Trent’s company hires hundreds of people and it’s not like they are all out to kill you.”

“Good to know. Still, I’ll be careful around Sharon, although she doesn’t strike me as an assassin.”

“Oh? You no longer have a death wish?” Turning away to put some distance between them, she walked to her duffel bag, pulling out the clothes she planned to wear to the party later.

"What would you say if I told you that you gave me a reason to live?”

Gwen shook her head despite pleasure at his words sliding like treacle through her veins. Arthur was flippant when he wanted to die and he was flippant when he wanted to live. How could anyone take anything he said seriously? “I’d say that I’m not sleeping with you.”

“Don’t pretend you’ve not thought about it,” said Arthur, far too smugly for Gwen. “Because when it comes to you, that’s all I think about.”

Ignoring Arthur, Gwen eyed the dress that she brought for the party. Merlin hadn’t sent over any dresses this time, probably thinking that she would at least have appropriate dresses for a casual party in the middle of the woods. This dress was not only bright red, it was also rather short, although that made it easier for movement as long as she didn’t care that the world might see her underwear. It was a good thing if there was one thing Gwen indulged in, it was pretty underwear.

“You can wear your shirt and pants to the party. I wouldn’t mind,” said Arthur as he walked over to where she stood. She saw him glance down at the dress in her hands, then his brows lifted. “I changed my mind. You should wear that dress.”

“How long more before the party? Shouldn’t you be outside, mingling with kids and volunteers?”

The grin that slowly spread across Arthur’s face made Gwen want to kick him. “Is spending too much time in an enclosed space with a large, comfortable bed with me taking a toll on your self-control?”

That was it.

She hung the dress up, then turned to face Arthur and his annoying grin. In the time she’d taken to hang up the dress, he’d moved to lean far too casually against a nearby wall, his eyes on her. Gwen took a step towards him, trapping him between her and the wall. Leaning closer, she enjoyed how Arthur’s grin slid off his face and his eyes widened ever so slightly. In one quick movement, she lifted herself up on tiptoe, then ghosted her lips across his lips and cheeks.

So close to him, Gwen could see the faint scars from puberty and the smile lines at his eyes. In his ear, she whispered, “I might have a lot of self-control, Arthur Pendragon, but let’s not forget that I’m the one who knows how to hurt you badly so you might want to stop with the taunting.”

To emphasise her point, she bit his ear.

With a growl, Arthur’s arms wrapped around her waist and yanked her even closer to him. “Now, you’re just playing with fire, Guinevere.”

Before she could say anything, Arthur was kissing her, hard and insistent. One of his hands moved from her waist, sliding up her side, sending trails of heat in its wake, until his fingers dug into her hair, and pulling back slightly, urged her to open her mouth. Her own palms found his chest.

This was a bad idea but for the life of her, Gwen could not remember why. Not when his mouth and hands were making her barely able to concentrate on anything that wasn’t Arthur. Aching to feel him, Gwen moved one hand down, searching for the hem of his t-shirt, then sliding up against his heated skin, revelling in how he sucked in his breath at her touch. And when she rocked her hips against his, he let out a groan. Who knew she had this sort of power of the prince of Camelot?

Said prince was pressing hot, wet kisses on her face, his fingers still attempting to undo her bun. With a rough laugh at his hopelessness, Gwen shook his hand off her hair and quickly undid her bun, letting her curls fall to her shoulder. The pins fell to the ground.

Arthur blinked.

“Has anyone ever told you just how gorgeous you are?”

“Shut up.” And this time, she closed the gap and kissed him. It was terribly annoying how princes tasted so good.

Wrapping his arms tightly around her, Arthur took a step away from the wall. As they kissed. Arthur deftly manoeuvred them across the room, until the back of her legs hit the bed. Logic penetrated the fog of desire that was clouding her brain and she broke their kiss.

“Arthur –“

His lips landed on her neck and he suckled. Desire pooled in her stomach.

Gwen shoved him, then took a step away from the bed. Arthur’s hair was mussed, probably because of her, and he looked thoroughly and utterly kissed. By her. Quickly, she turned away so she wasn’t looking at him but that didn’t lessen the desire in her to just throw herself at him. Gulping in air, Gwen tried to calm her racing heart. She’d been through some dangerous situations, but none had made her feel as vulnerable as this.

Finally, Arthur spoke. “I’m sorry.”

“It takes two people to kiss,” said Gwen. She took in one more breath before turning to face him again. “But that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.”

“Why? We’re adults and we are clearly attracted to each other.” He continued to stand a distance away from her but his low words caressed her skin. “I am very attracted to you, if you hadn’t noticed.”

“That’s the problem. You distract me and I can’t be distracted when I’m supposed to protect you.”

Arthur ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “You’re right.”

“Of course I’m right.” Feeling a lot more in control of herself, Gwen walked over to the wall and picked up all her pins from the floor.

“But once this is all over –“

“We’ll go back to leading separate lives,” said Gwen firmly. Arthur wasn’t an ordinary man that she could go on dates with, have good sex with and finish up with a supper of kebab. He was the prince and while she wasn’t looking to settle down at the moment, she liked to think of that as a possibility in her relationships.

“I see.” There was a coolness in Arthur’s tone, the same coolness she heard whenever he was hurt. “The party is in two hours. I’m going to use the shower first, if you don’t mind.”

“No, of course not.”

From where she stood, Gwen watched Arthur dig out a set of clothes from his bag, then walk into the adjoining bathroom. When she was finally alone, she sank onto the bed and tried to ignore the feelings of regret that were beginning to surface.

* * *

Didn’t everyone want to marry a prince? Everyone except Gwen, that is. Not that he was planning on marrying her, but he did want to date her, see where their attraction took them. At the very least, it would take them to bed and after all those kisses, Arthur was very optimistic about what they would be like in bed. But no. Gwen apparently wasn’t the least interested in exploring anything with him.

And while Arthur had been rebuffed before, this one hurt.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Leon walked up to where Arthur and Gwen stood. “Gwen. You look lovely.”

That, Arthur thought, was an understatement. Probably in reaction to what had happened, Gwen was not wearing that red dress he’d seen but was in her usual white shirt and black pants. Even then, she still looked wonderful.

“Hey Leon. This barn is looking good.”

Leon laughed. “It’s a proper hall, not a barn. Anyway, Mayor Johnson is due to arrive in a few moments.”

“Great,” said Arthur. “Let’s go meet his car.”

Mayor Johnson, like every politician Arthur had ever met, was a smarmy, insincere person who held on to Gwen’s hand for far too long. Still, he plastered a smile on his face and did his best to charm the man. Now and then, Gwen would chip in to express how great the charity was, supporting whatever he said and Arthur was both pleased and worried at how much he appreciated her support. In between, Arthur went round the party, Gwen next to him at all times, and met with various volunteers and took more selfies than he’d ever done in his life. He spoke to Sharon a few times and despite Gwen’s misgivings, she seemed no different from any of the other staff.

The end of dinner was marked by a performance by the children and the volunteers. It was rough and a few children seemed quite uncertain why they were on stage but the audience clearly appreciated their efforts if the applause at the end was any indication. As the guests started to leave, Arthur made a last pitch at the mayor.

“I appreciate that the piece of land will be very beneficial to your charity and when I review the proposals for the land, I will certainly keep it in mind,” said Johnson with the most insincere smile. “It’s great that you are so involved in this. I admit, I did not expect it of you.”

Arthur returned the smile with one of his own. “Perhaps, like these children, I’m trying to make a change in my life.”

He wasn’t sure what it was in his tone or body language but Gwen gently touched his back. When he glanced at her and she smiled back at him, his heart squeezed a little and, foolish as it might be, he took her hand, sliding his fingers between hers. It was as if the party, working together to convince the mayor, had taken the edge off their night.

By the time the party wound down, the mayor and his entourage had left earlier and the kids had been put to bed, leaving the volunteers and counsellors to clean up. When they left their cabin earlier that evening, the sky was still light and tension shimmered between them. Now, having said their goodbyes, darkness had enveloped the whole camp and they walked hand in hand back to the cabin. The cabin wasn’t far although the road towards it was quiet and lacked the lighting found in other parts of the camp. Arthur knew there was a lake nearby and he had the sudden thought of looking at it in the moonlight, so he tugged Gwen off the path and down to where the lake was.

“Arthur.” Gwen stopped moving, refusing to budge from the few meters off the path. “This is not a good idea.”

He tugged on her hand gently. “The lake is going to look gorgeous in the moonlight. I used to camp here when I was a kid. I want you to see it.”

“Arthur, walking into a dark forest is not a good idea when someone is trying to kill you.”

He hesitated for a moment. “Right again. Come, let’s go back to the cabin and sit in awkward tension.”

But before he could move back to the path, Gwen tackled him and he fell to the ground. “If you changed your mind –“

“Shh.”

The glint in the moonlight meant Gwen had drawn her gun and Arthur’s heart started to race, and not in the good way it did just some hours ago. From where he lay prone on the damp grass, he could hear the normal noise from the hall and nothing that struck him as out of the ordinary. But Gwen must have heard something, because half her weight was on his, keeping him from moving much.

For what seemed like a long time, they lay like that on the ground. Arthur could feel Gwen’s chest move as she breathed, her hot breath against his cheek. Eventually, she shifted then stood, reaching out a hand to help him up. Placing a finger on her lips, she gestured for him to follow her.

They barely took one step when someone walked up to them. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Gwen hide her gun behind her back.

“I thought you would be back in the cabin by now,” said Sharon with a smile. “They do say that the lake is lovely in the moonlight. Have you seen it?”

“Gwen and I thought that we would spend some time together in the cabin. I’ve been busy lately and we haven’t had much time to ourselves.”

“I think you should go look at the lake.” Sharon’s smile was still on her face but her voice was a lot cooler. “It’s very pretty.”

“Whatever you’re doing, it won’t end up well,” said Gwen taking a step forward, Arthur realised, to shield him. “You’re still young, Sharon. Don’t do anything that would jeopardise your future.”

“I said go to the lake.” With a trembling hand, Sharon pulled a gun out of her pocket. “Don’t make me use this.”

Behind them, Arthur heard the happy chatter of the other camp volunteers and staff. The chatter was getting far too close and Arthur worried that Sharon, with all her nerves, would make a foolish move.

Gwen must have thought the same. “Ok, we’ll go to the lake. Just stop waving the gun around.” She pushed Arthur and he stumbled backwards. “Why don’t you lead us to the lake?”

“I’m not that silly. Turn around and walk. And no talking.” Her hands still trembling, she lifted the gun.

Somehow, Arthur managed to make himself walk towards the lake, conscious that Gwen was keeping herself between Sharon and him. It was her job to protect him but the thought of Gwen taking a bullet for him made him cold. Each step he took, Arthur was hyper-aware of the sound of the grass under his feet, the sound of breathing behind him and the steadily dropping temperatures of the night. He shivered and the random thought that it was a good thing that Gwen wasn’t wearing that short red dress went through his head.

The lake, from what Arthur remembered, wasn’t that far from the camp but the walk seemed to take forever. But finally, the trees cleared and the large lake appeared in front of them. Sharon was right, it was beautiful and he would normally have enjoyed the experience of being here and with Gwen. Instead, it looked like the lake was to be his execution site. The moment he realised that he possibly had something to live for, he was going to die. He stopped, and Gwen bumped into him.

“Whatever happens, I want you to run.” She muttered into his ear before she took a step back.

“Walk properly! No talking!” said Sharon. “To the lake.”

Arthur walked on. Once he reached the edge of the lake, he stopped. “Is the plan to shoot me and toss me into the lake?”

“That is the plan,” said a familiar voice. “Thank you Sharon.”

“Trent.” Arthur swung around. Sharon’s gun was still trained on them, together with Trent’s gun. Gwen’s face was blank and her hands were in her pocket but neither Trent nor Sharon were focused on her. Arthur was quite sure Gwen was up to something.

“Killing me isn’t going to bring your brother back,” said Arthur.

“No, but it’ll make me feel better. And with the police breathing down my neck, I thought it was best I get it done quickly.” Trent cocked the gun.

In an attempt to stall for time, Arthur continued to talk even as his heart pounded. “Your brother was the drunk one. Did your dad tell you that? He drove and he crashed the car but I took the blame.”

Trent moved the gun to aim at Arthur’s head. “Liar.”

Arthur tried to keep his breathing even. “Your dad knew, but he was too distraught to believe it.”

“Liar and I don’t want to listen to you talk any –“

Sirens sounded in the background, Gwen moved and suddenly, as shot rang out in the air, he was plunged into the lake. The freezing cold stung him and water went up his nose. Someone’s – Gwen’s arm gripped him and pulled him through the water. He was quickly running out of breath and he struggled. Finally, Gwen pulled him out of the water. Coughing and spluttering, he gulped in a lungful of air.

“Stop making so much noise or they will find us.” Her arm was now around his waist as they tread water at a corner of the lake.

“Was that sirens I heard?” asked Arthur once he got his breath back.

Gwen nodded. “Sent a signal to Mithian once I realised what was happening.”

“A bat signal. You’re brilliant,” said Arthur with a smile. Treading water was getting tiring and he was freezing. “Do you think it’s safe enough for us to get out?”

“I hope so. A wet gun is quite useless and my phone is probably in the middle of this lake already.” Gwen paddled to the side and heaved herself up. Then she helped Arthur out of the lake.

Even in his frozen state, Arthur couldn’t help but notice that Gwen’s white shirt was completely see-through and moulded to her body. He tore his eyes away and to where the camp was, across the lake. Police lights flashed against the darkness and a sense of calm filled him. Surely it was finally all over.

He rubbed his arms, still shivering for the sudden dunk in the lake and the shock of having a gun pointed at him. “I hope the police got them both.”

“Me too.”

A flashlight beam swung past them and Gwen quickly yanked him to squat behind a tree.

“Your highness? Guinevere? This is the police.”

Arthur heaved a sigh of relief and taking Gwen’s hand, they emerged from the tree. A uniformed policeman was waiting for them. Unfortunately, he had no towels with him. Arthur felt Gwen move slightly closer and he realised that she was probably as cold as he was. He slung one arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer and she immediately snuggled into him. Maybe it was just the pleasure of having Gwen in his arms but he already felt warmer.

The policeman walked them back around the lake where a few police cars sat. Leon stood together with a few other people from the camp and thankfully, they had towels. Each of them grabbed one just as the police descended on them, asking questions. As he clutched the towel around him, Arthur tried to answer the police but his eyes kept darting to Gwen who stood some distance from her.

He should be happy that Trent had been caught, but all Arthur could think about, other than how bloody cold he was, was that this was probably the last time he would see Gwen.

“We’ll contact you again if we have more questions,” said the officer.

Arthur nodded.

“Do you want us to drive you back to the palace?”

“No,” said Arthur impulsively. “I think we’ll stay at the cabin, if you don’t mind Leon.”

Leon stepped in. “You are still welcome at the cabin of course. The kids seem to have no idea of the drama that occurred so that’s a good thing.”

“Good.” Arthur looked over to where Gwen was still talking to an officer. One more night with Gwen. He would have to make the best of it.


	11. Chapter 11

They hadn’t spoken all the way back to the cabin but Arthur had taken her hand and held it. Her heart was barely starting to calm down and she could still feel the adrenalin surging through her body, which was probably why she wasn’t feeling that cold yet. They stepped into the room and Arthur locked the door.

The sensible thing would be to call either Elena or Mithian and get them to pick her up.

“You should get out of those wet clothes or you’ll get sick,” said Gwen, her voice coming out hoarser than she expected.

“You should too,” said Arthur quietly as he looked at her, his eyes dark with emotions.

Tension and expectations hung heavy in the air around them, their breathing the only sound. Arthur was waiting for her to make a decision, to make a move. One night, she told herself. One night.

Swallowing hard and keeping her eyes locked with Arthur’s, Gwen lifted her shaking hands to the top button of her shirt.

Arthur said nothing, continuing to watch her.

She unbuttoned the button, then moved her hands to the next one. She unbuttoned that button as well.

Arthur did the same. A button for a button.

Gwen peeled off her wet shirt, letting it drop to the floor. When Arthur did the same, Gwen allowed herself time to look at him – the dusting of hair on his chest, the golden hue of his skin and the flat stomach she touched some hours ago. The heat that was building in her was enough to stop her from feeling the cold and from the way Arthur’s eyes devoured her, she suspected he felt the same way. Yet he made no move to touch her.

Instead, he loosened his belt and unbuckled his pants. Her own hands fumbled a little at her pants button but she quickly pushed her pants to the floor and stepped out of them. She had never been an exhibitionist but standing in the cabin only in her underwear, with Arthur’s eyes flashing with desire as he looked at her, Gwen found herself enjoying every second of it. She too indulged herself, examining all of Arthur, biting back a groan when he shucked his boxers and stood there, unashamedly naked.

She wanted Arthur. There was no lying to herself now. Gwen wanted Arthur desperately, even if it was only for one night. She was aching with arousal, desperate to feel Arthur’s lips and hands on her. Quickly, with little finesse, she shed her own underwear.

Arthur sucked in a breath, then held out a hand.

Gwen smiled as she put her hand in his. “We’re full of lake gunk.”

“That’s why we’re going to take a shower. A nice, warm shower.”

It was the most erotic shower Gwen had ever taken. The shower was tiny and the water pressure low, but neither of that mattered when the crown prince of Camelot was running a soapy sponge across her breasts in circles, his brows furrowed in concentration.

“You’re taking this cleaning thing very seriously,” she said, ending on a groan when he moved the sponge with deliberate slowness across her sensitive nipples. “Very seriously and very slowly.”

He grinned at her. “Cleanliness is next to godliness. And I am very keen to get to heaven with you.”

Gwen couldn’t help herself and burst into laughter, jerking back from Arthur and his sponge and hitting her back on the soap tray. “Ow!”

The sponge dropped to the floor and Arthur hauled her close, their wet bodies sliding against each other, making her knees weak. His lips in her hair, he asked if she was alright. Taking the opportunity, Gwen ran her hands down his back, enjoying the feel of his bare skin under her hands.

“I think we’ve stood under this shower long enough to be considered clean,” she murmured into his shoulder. Reaching lower, she cupped him in one hand, smiling when he gasped. “And there are better things we can be doing.”

Slowly removing her hand, Arthur took a step back, bent and picked up the sponge. “Good things come to those who wait. Now, come here. I’ve not finished exploring you.”

“You’re full of clichés,” she muttered, unable to stop smiling, but let Arthur bring his sponge back to her breasts.

It was a good thing that the shower was so small because then, Gwen could lean against one of the walls as Arthur continued where he left off. Her stomach, her hips, her trembling inner thighs, all the way down to her feet. Then he took the shower head and slowly washed all the suds off her. He washed the suds off her feet, then pressed a kiss on her feet. Moving up, he aimed the shower head at her thighs, then pressed more kisses up her thigh. Sighing, Gwen slid her hand in his hair, the wall no longer enough to keep her upright. If he didn’t stop with this teasing, Gwen was simply going to take matters into her own hands very soon.

“I never thought you to be such a tease,” she barely managed to say just before his mouth landed between her thighs, exactly where she needed it. “Arthur. Oh god.”

“Do you like this?” Arthur asked.

“Are you going to ask every time?”

She could feel him laugh against her, sending the most pleasurable shivers through her. In response, Gwen pressed her hips against him, urging him to finish what he started. He started again with a slow lick. Then another. And another until Gwen didn’t know what she was saying, only that she wanted more, needed more.

Then he gave her that more and her knees buckled and she might have screamed.

Even Arthur’s smug expression didn’t annoy her for once and she smiled into his eyes, as he got up and covered her mouth with his, pressing his body against hers, showing her how much he wanted her. “We’re probably clean enough now,” whispered Arthur, breaking the kiss.

Gwen dodged his lips and took the sponge from his hand. “Oh no. I think you need to be clean as well.”

Before he could say anything, Gwen moved and turned so Arthur now leaned against the wall. She ran the sponge across his chest, letting her nail scrape gently across his nipple. Arthur let out a harsh groan and his head dropped back against the tile.

* * *

All those dreams and fantasies he had had were only a fraction of the gloriousness that was sex with Gwen. She was a mass of contradictions – demanding yet willing, shy yet bold and he delighted in all the many sides of her he discovered as they spent the night in bed. But as much as Arthur wanted the night to last forever, their lake adventures had tired them out and eventually, they succumbed to sleep.

The morning light streamed through the light curtains but Arthur had awakened before the sun. Gwen was still fast asleep, her face tucked into his chest, her soft breaths comforting against his skin. He pressed a kiss on her forehead, then tightened his hold on her. Surely Gwen could feel that there was something between them, something that was worth exploring. They could attend all those events he was obliged to attend together. With her, even if she was kicking his shin, the events would be a lot more fun. They could look at the lake in the moonlight without people trying to kill him. When she woke, they would talk about it. He smiled at the thought.

Arthur was knee deep in his fantasies when the knock came.

“Arthur?”

“Go away,” he yelled at the door. He wasn’t getting out of bed for as long as possible. In his arms, Gwen shifted.

“Arthur!” The knocking continued, louder.

With a sigh, Arthur untangled his limbs from Gwen’s warm body, pulled on a robe and made his way to the door. Cracking it open, he saw Leon looking tense. “What do you want?”

“The press is here and they are being a pain. It’s disrupting things at the camp.”

Arthur rubbed his forehead. He really didn’t want to leave Gwen but it appeared he didn’t have a choice. “Give me a moment.”

Gwen was still sleeping when Arthur emerged from the bathroom. He brushed her hair from her face and kissed her gently before leaving to face the press.

“Is the drunk driving accident the reason for Trent’s desire to kill you?”

“Your girlfriend is a trained security expert. Is she the reason you managed to escape?”

“You didn’t serve any time for the accident. Do you think that’s fair?”

This was not the best time for a press conference. He was unprepared and unfocused. Still, he couldn’t help but brag about Gwen and how she’d saved his life. And clearly, it was a story that the press devoured.

“I am the lucky one to have such a capable girlfriend like Gwen,” said Arthur with a smile. The reporters bombarded him with more questions. Just then, from the corner of his eye, he saw a distinctive pink car drive up. Elena’s girlfriend’s car.

He stopped talking and looked around. Sure enough, he saw, as his heart sank, Gwen walking to the car.

“It seems that Guinevere has had a positive influence on you.”

“Yes,” he said as he watched Gwen walk into the car. She was leaving without even saying goodbye.

“Where is your girlfriend now?”

He looked at the young man who asked the question. “She’s uh, resting. It’s been a long night for us.”

The pink car started.

“What’s next for you and your girlfriend?”

“I really don’t know.” Arthur forced a smile on his face but all he could think was that she didn’t even say goodbye.

* * *

"Panicking," said Elena, handing a miserable looking Gwen a cup of tea, "is running out on him after a night of decadent sex -"

"It was not decadent," muttered Gwen as she shoved the pile of ironing to a corner of the sofa, trying not to picture the night in question. One moment he was an annoying client and then somewhere along the line, he’d morphed into someone she was missing. She groaned.

Elena settled down on the space Gwen made. "As I was saying, that is panicking. Panicking isn't breaking up with your fake boyfriend through the press without him knowing. That’s relationship-destruction.”

Gwen buried her face in her cup, refusing to look at the newspaper that had led Elena to her door on an early Saturday morning. But even without looking, she could still see the large headlines that screamed Bodyguard Girlfriend dumps Prince after attempt on his life. She couldn’t bring herself to read the accompanying article. “They ambushed me outside the police station, asking about Arthur. It was the first thing that came out of my mouth. I’m not exactly media trained.”

“I think the big question is, do you want to be with the prince?” Mithian tapped on her phone as she sprawled on Gwen’s armchair, her legs hanging off one arm rest.

“How is that even a question? He’s a prince, I’m a normal person. There’s no future here.” Gwen set the cup on the coffee table and grabbed a piece of chocolate. Chocolate was always a good bandaid for heart ache. “And it was just sex. Doesn’t mean anything.”

“Right,” said Elena. “That’s why you’re stuffing your face with chocolate and looking like someone killed your cat.”

Gwen scowled. “Maybe someone did kill my cat.”

“You don’t have a cat,” said Mithian. “Now, let’s look at this logically. You are miserable and your house is a mess, although your house is always a mess. You admit you miss the prince. Clearly, you like him, his faults and all. On the other hand, the prince has flirted incessantly with you culminating in a night of passion –“

Gwen covered her face with her hands. “Stop talking about it like it’s a soap opera.”

“And he’s mentioned wanting to see you after this job,” continued Mithian. “Obviously he’s not immune to you either.”

“That’s why he hasn’t contacted me in the last three days,” muttered Gwen as she popped another piece of chocolate into her mouth. This heart ache was going to cost her hours in the gym. In her head, she swore at Arthur. This was all his fault with his annoying flirting and great sex.

Elena sighed. “He probably thinks you have absolutely no interest in him. I mean running out on him, then breaking up with him in the press – that doesn’t exactly send the message that you’re hoping to have a relationship with him.”

“It’s not like a relationship between us will last. So why even start one?” One more piece of chocolate and she would stop.

Mithian put her phone away and shrugged. “If that is the way you feel, then I guess everything is fine, right? The job is over and you won’t have to see him again.”

The thought of not seeing Arthur again, not putting up with his annoying teasing or his terrible sense of humour made Gwen reach for another piece of chocolate.

“You know,” said Elena, “not every relationship has to be a serious, long term one. What’s wrong with a fling with the prince?”

"It's for the best," said Gwen firmly. If she repeated it enough, she'd believe it. Three days and she missed him. She shouldn’t have ran away that morning. She should have stayed, waited for him to return, and talked to him about where they went from there. Instead, she’d panicked and ran. Pain laced her heart at her own cowardice.

Her doorbell rang. Elena hopped off the sofa and went to the door.

"I don't need a religious conversion," said Gwen from the sofa. "I don't need a vacuum cleaner either."

"Oh." Elena shut the door immediately and leaned against it, her eyes wide. "Uh, it's the prince. I just slammed the door in the face of the crown prince.”

Gwen scrambled from the sofa, her heart racing. “I’m not here.”

“Gwen? I know you’re in there. I saw you!” Arthur rapped on the door again.

Mithian shot Gwen a look. “What do you want us to do?”

“Go away!” yelled Elena. “She doesn’t want to see you.”

Arthur knocked on the door harder. “Look, I just want to talk to you. Just for a while.”

“Gwen?” said Mithian. “Do you want to talk to him?”

Arthur continued to knock.

Gwen sighed. “Let him in or my neighbours are going to start gossiping.”

“I’m opening the door,” said Elena warningly.

Arthur stood on the other side, a bunch of flowers in his arms. He looked as gorgeous as Gwen remembered. He also looked a little tired. When his eyes landed on her, he smiled tentatively.

“Sweet pea,” he said quietly.

Then he looked at Elena and Mithian and nodded at them. “Do you mind giving us some privacy?”

The words ‘sweet pea’ were enough to make her heart flutter and remember that night when Arthur had called her sweet pea as he moved in her. Even as she was filled with desire, she’d managed to kick him and he’d laugh low and soft in her ear.

“You’ll always be my sweet pea,” he had groaned against her throat.

Gwen blinked, dragging her thoughts back to the present. “I’ll be fine.”

“Call us later,” said Mithian as she dragged Elena out of the apartment. Then they were gone and Gwen stood alone in the living room with Arthur. Seeing him again made Gwen’s feelings even more intense. Her hurt, her anger and her affection tumbled in her stomach. She grabbed on to the anger, it was safer.

“I saw that you broke up with me,” said Arthur, gesturing to the coffee table where the newspapers lay.

Gwen shrugged, then sat back down on the sofa, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible. “I’m sorry about that.”

Arthur frowned at the pile of clothes on her sofa, gave them a shove and sat down next to Gwen. Gently, he balanced the flowers he brought on the magazines on the coffee table, then grabbed the last of her chocolate. Ass. “It was quite the surprise when I was awoken by press wanting to know why you dumped me. But, it’s fine. It’s for the better really.”

For the better. Gwen didn’t realise three words could hurt so much. She looked away, not wanting to look at Arthur, to think of all the foolish, silly hopes that she’d secretly harboured even though she knew better.

“Why do you have clothes everywhere?”

He wanted to talk about her ability to do household chores now? A ridiculous thought entered her brain. Maybe it was her inability to keep on top of her housework that made him decide she wasn’t relationship material. Of course he was a sexist jerk.

“I don’t like ironing,” she said coolly, still staring into the distance.

Arthur nodded, then continued to look round her apartment. “I was convinced that your wardrobe was nothing but white shirts and black pants. But look, you have a pink shirt too.”

She turned her head to glare at him. “Why are you here?” she snapped. The sooner he left, the sooner she could curl in bed and lick her wounds.

“Housekeeping does my laundry, including ironing. They are amazingly efficient at it.”

“Good for you,” said Gwen, a mix of frustration and confusion building in here. Was he here to make small talk?

He cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. “They wouldn’t mind extra laundry.”

“Are you offering to bring my laundry to the palace?” she asked incredulously. This must be a dream. Why is it when she dreamt of Arthur, it involved dirty clothes? Was she being punished for not ironing her clothes?

“Well, it’s one of the perks of dating a prince,” he said. “Free laundry.”

Oh. A sliver of hope started to blossom in her. “Are there other perks?”

Arthur smiled at her. “There’s also the fact that there’s no need to worry about public transport or parking.”

“Huh.” Gwen moved closer to Arthur and he took her hand. They had held hands so many times, but Gwen had never really thought about how well their hands fit. His paler skin next to her darker one, their nails both cut short and

“They always serve princes the best food at restaurants and there’s no need to queue up.” Letting go of her hand, he cupped her face.

“No laundry, private transportation and good food. It’s very tempting.”

“He might name a ship after you,” said Arthur, leaning closer to whisper in her ears. “And there’s the very impressive crown jewels.”

Laughter bubbled out of her and she fell against his shoulder, burying her face in it and enjoying the feel of his arms closing around her. For a while, they sat like that, her arms around his neck. She could feel him kiss her hair. It felt wonderful and Gwen realised Elena was right. She should just enjoy what they had now. The future could wait.

“So what do you think?” Arthur asked when she finally pulled away from him. “About dating a prince?”

“Why would the prince want to date an ordinary girl?”

“Because she isn’t ordinary at all. She’s strong, determined, kind and never lets me off the hook for anything. More importantly, I am happy when I am with her. I look forward to seeing her.”

“You said you were pleased that I dumped you publically.”

His thumb rubbed her cheek. “Well, the public part wasn’t great to be honest. But I’m glad we broke up our fake relationship because I don’t want anything between us to be fake.”

“I think it stopped being fake some time ago,” Gwen said.

“I know. I just wanted you to know.” Arthur closed the distance between them and kissed her lightly. Leaning his forehead against hers, he smiled. “I’m glad you agreed with this whole dating a prince thing because plan B was to hire an assassin to make another attempt on my life.”

Gwen rolled her eyes and kicked his shin. “Shut up and kiss me.”

“My pleasure.”


	12. Chapter 12

“Guinevere Degrance. Where is she?” Arthur gripped the counter tightly, his voice calm, even as fear and panic threatened to choke him.

The nurse looked up at him. “Are you a relative?”

“I’m her boyfriend and I’m also the prince of Camelot.”

Her eyes widened momentarily. “She’s in surgery at the moment. If you take a seat, I’ll let you know when she gets out.”

How did the nurse expect him to sit down and wait when Gwen was hurt and in surgery? He tugged at his shirt collar, finding it difficult to breathe. He’d always known Gwen’s job was risky, dangerous, but taking that call from Mithian telling him that Gwen was in hospital had stopped his heart, and his only thought was that he couldn’t lose Gwen. In the three months they had been dating, life had never been so good, especially one month ago when he told her that he loved her and she had rolled her eyes at him, said that she knew and she loved him too. His hand went into his pocket and he fingered the ring box he’d been carrying around for a while.

“Arthur?”

He swung around, just as Elena flung herself into his arms. “Elena! What happened to Gwen?”

“She got stabbed in the shoulder protecting our latest client,” said Elena. “Oh god. They won’t tell us anything. And Elyan is out of town and I can’t get hold of him.”

A shoulder wound. That didn’t sound life-threatening and the band of tension that had wrapped itself around his heart eased a little.

He patted Elena on the back and with a sniff, she let go of him. “Mithian went to settle the paperwork. We kinda assumed that you’d be alright with her in a first class ward.”

“Of course,” he said, wondering why they even had to ask.

Mithian and Merlin appeared a little while later and the four of them sat quietly in the stark, white waiting room. On his phone, Arthur scrolled through various articles on stab wound injuries, bookmarking all those with instructions on what to do after the surgery.

“She’s going to be fine,” said Merlin. “I mean, she’s going to be a lot of pain, I imagine but she’ll survive.”

“I know.” Arthur dropped his head back, letting it rest against the wall. “Are you able to get hold of Elyan?”

“No, but I got people back at the palace working on it.”

He closed his eyes. “Good.”

Much later, after Arthur had downed several cups of coffee and Merlin had reprimanded the nurse for alerting the press about Gwen’s condition, Gwen was finally out of surgery.

“She’s still sleeping but one of you can go in to visit her,” said the doctor after assuring them that she was going to fine. “I assume that since you’re the prince, it’ll be you?”

Arthur glanced at Elena and Mithian.

“Send her our love and keep us updated. We’ll come by tomorrow,” said Mithian.

“Can she eat donuts?” asked Elena. “Gwen loves donuts.”

“If she wants to,” said the doctor. He turned to look at Arthur and nodded. “Your highness.”

Gwen looked even smaller as she lay on the hospital bed and Arthur’s heart ached. Her right shoulder was wrapped in bandaged and she looked pale, but otherwise, she looked well. Relief flooded him and he smiled. Quietly, Arthur pulled the chair closer to the bed and sat down. He took her hand and kissed it.

“Hey,” he said. “You scared me so much. The doctor said you’ll be fine although you’ll need physiotherapy to get your arm working as normal again. He said it’ll be tough, but you’re a tough one.” He sighed, then tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. Suddenly, he felt tired. He lay his head on the bed, keeping her hand in his.

Someone was playing with his hair.

“Honey bun,” said Gwen when he lifted his head. With her left hand, she dragged her finger across his cheek. “You have sleep marks on your face.”

Catching her fingers, Arthur smiled. “How are you feeling?”

“Pain. It’s not so bad though. I’m sorry to worry you.”

“You realise that I’m going to lock you in my room forever so this never happens again,” said Arthur teasingly.

Gwen smiled and patted his cheek. “And you realise I’ll escape and run away and you’ll never see me again.”

“Alright, forget the locking up bit. But you’re coming back with me until you’re fully recovered.”

“Recovering in your fancy bedroom and being waited on hand and foot? That I can live with,” she sighed.

* * *

 

They were curled up on the sofa, sharing a box of donuts and sipping sparkling grape juice. Gwen had just returned from physiotherapy and Arthur quickly learned that she liked being fussed over after a session. He didn’t begrudge her – the sessions were hard work.

“I have most movement back,” said Gwen as she snuggled into his. “Hopefully, I’ll be back at work in a month or so.”

His arm around her shoulder, he gently ran his hand over her shoulder. “Your company is still doing well, even with you out of the field.”

Her head fell onto his shoulder. “It is, surprisingly, but we’re still riding high on saving your life. Consultation jobs have increased.”

"I was thinking,” said Arthur as he drew circles on her shoulder, “that perhaps your company might consider focusing on consultation kind of jobs, instead of jobs out in the field.”

Gwen lifted her head. “Are you worried I’d get hurt again?”

He hadn’t meant to bring this up and his nerves were now strung tight. “That but mostly, I was hoping we could get married. You know, do the whole traditional family thing – get married, take one of my dad’s various mansions and live there, maybe have children, maybe not. Royal families tend to be pretty tradition, you know. but we don’t have to be. I mean it’s not like I’ve a great reputation in the first –“

“Arthur –“

She looked so serious, Arthur was convinced she was going to say no. So he ploughed on. “I would like to get married but umm, I don’t think we could if you are going to continue doing bodyguarding stuff. My dad would put bodyguards on you and that would just be weird for your job.”

“Arthur –“

“But it’s not like we have to get married. I’m quite happy being with you like this, maybe until you get old and can’t guard people anymore, then we can get marrie –“

Her lips touched his. “Can I talk now?”

“Ok.” The last time he was this nervous was introducing her to his father who now, thankfully, tolerated her.

“Right, so if this is a proposal, it’s terrible.” She kissed him again. “Especially for a prince.”

“It’s not. It’s an expression of intent,” he muttered, slightly annoyed that she was teasing him, but when she kissed him again, he snaked his arm around her waist and held her close.

She kissed his cheek, then his throat. “Well then, should you propose, maybe in that little Bed and Breakfast I like very much, I am highly likely to say yes.”

“Hmm.” He knew he was grinning now, but Gwen was still kissing him and he wasn’t about to interrupt her.

“And you’re right. No one will take me seriously if I had bodyguards protecting me.” She nuzzled his shoulder. “So while I don’t think I’m ready to stop working, I think I could work something out. Maybe hire someone to do the actual bodyguarding, while I stop Mithian from spending too much money on tech toys.”

Arthur moved so that he lay on the sofa with Gwen on top of him. “I love you,” he said just before Gwen laughed and kissed him again.

* * *

 

The best thing about his limousine was the privacy screen, Arthur thought as Gwen, straddling his lap, suckled his neck. His hands smoothed over her pants, squeezing her. Her arm was back to normal and it showed in the way she was tugging at his shirt.

“Why can’t you wear skirts?” he grumbled as he fiddled with the fastening of her pants.

“I thought you liked the shirt and pants combo.”

“Not when I’m trying to have sex with you in the car.”

She nipped his ear. “Next time, tell me before we leave. Where are we going anyway?”

“Dinner,” said Arthur, finally unzipping her pants and slipping his hand down those tiny, laced panties she preferred. “And stop talking and concentrate. I’m hoping to have some pre-dinner dessert.”

They were still adjusting their clothes when the limousine came to a stop.

“Thanks, Kathy.”

When Arthur got out of the car, he saw that Gwen was staring at the Bed and Breakfast. Her eyes met his. “Oh,” she said, then Arthur swore that she blushed. “You didn’t tell me to pack a bag.”

He stretched out a hand to her and winked. “Come on. Annis made us a special dinner. Then I have a non-surprise.”

Chapter 24

Gwen looked at the ring on her finger, still slightly amazed that it was there and that it was so delicate and unobtrusive. When Arthur had taken her hand across the table at Annis' Bed and Breakfast, told her that he couldn’t imagine life without her and asked her to marry him, she had expected one of those huge, over-the-top pieces of jewellery the royal family seemed to prefer. She much preferred the one Arthur picked out.

“Are you ready?” Arthur walked into the bedroom, fussing with his cuffs. Over the past few months, she’d seen him in his formal tuxedo so many times, yet it never failed to take her by surprise just how handsome he was. He looked up, his eye gleaming with appreciation. “You look gorgeous. How about we just skip the party altogether?”

With a smile, Gwen slipped her arm through his. “It’s probably bad form to miss your own engagement party.”

Arthur groaned. “At least I get to show everyone who my wonderful wife-to-be is.”

“The Vine leaked the news of our engagement weeks ago. No one is going to be surprised.”

“They’ll be surprised to see you in a dress,” he laughed then deftly dodged her kick, before kissing her. “Come on. We need to get there before my dad. It’s protocol.”

She’d walked with Arthur to the ballroom many times before, accompanying him to the many parties he had to attend, but this time, she was nervous. Her fingers dug into Arthur’s arm as she tried to keep her breathing steady.

“Hey,” said Arthur just as they approached the door to the ballroom, turning to face her. “I love you. Thank you for doing this.”

The doors opened and Gwen saw the huge crowd gathered to see them. She gripped Arthur’s arm. Then she noticed Elena and Vivian waving frantically, Vivian bouncing up and down. Next to them stood Elyan and Mithian, both with huge smiles on their faces. She smiled at them as Arthur led her into the room.

Several hours later, the whole group of them were ensconced in Arthur’s living room. Arthur, Merlin, Morgana and Elyan were hanging around the bar, drinking and laughing, while she sat with her friends at the sofa, surrounded by piles and piles of gifts.

“So, which of the many palaces is the king giving you two? And when are you moving?”

Gwen closed her eyes and leaned back into the sofa. Her uncomfortable heels were kicked off and she tucked her feet under her. “Who knows? Arthur will deal with the move. It’s not like he has anything else to do.”

“I heard that!” Breaking away from Merlin and Elyan, Arthur walked over to Gwen and kissed the top of her head. “Don’t believe a word she says about me not working. I work very hard looking after her.”

Gwen tilted her head up to smile at Arthur. “That, I can’t argue with.”

“And parties are hard work too,” he said as he walked back to the bar.

“Is he still working with Albion Hearts?” asked Mithian.

“He does, on and off. He’s their patron.” Gwen smiled. “Don’t worry about us. He’s not hugely ambitious but that’s probably hard to be when you’re prince. I’m fine with it now.”

When they first started dating, Gwen pushed him to do more with his life and it was one of the various things that led to heated quarrels, Arthur convinced that she didn’t think he was good enough and Gwen upset that he was so laidback. It took time, but Gwen learned to accept that her prince would never be the driven, ambitious kind of man she once thought she would marry. She still loved him so much, it was bordering on ridiculous.

“There’s a lot to be said for having a house husband. Plus he does have his official duties to do,” said Gwen.

“I want a house husband too,” said Elena, her cheeks pink from all the wine she’d downed.

Vivian gave her a light shove. “That’s not happening. You’re stuck with me.”

Elena curled her arms around Vivian. “That’s alright. I like you.”

“Are Merlin and Morgana together?” asked Mithian.

“If you ask him in front of Arthur, he’d say yes. But he’s not exactly interested in a relationship with anyone. He just does it to annoy Arthur, who is very amusing when he’s annoyed. Don’t tell him I told you,” said Gwen as her eyes drifted to Arthur, who was scowling at Merlin.

Mithian smiled as she put her glass of wine down. “I’m just glad you’re happy and that you’re still working.”

“Me too,” said Gwen. “It’s been pretty good.”

It was the wee hours of the morning when everyone left the palace, and Gwen was already half asleep on her aching feet.

“That wasn’t too bad,” said Arthur as he pulled off his shirt. “My dad behaved. He even praised you in his speech and no one got embarrassingly drunk.”

“Hmmm,” said Gwen as she crawled into the bed, pulling the quilt over her. She buried her face in the pillow and closed her eyes. Arthur prodded at her and she opened her eyes. “Go away.”

“You can’t sleep in that dress.”

“Watch me,” she muttered and closed her eyes again.

Arthur tugged at her dress. “Come on. Let’s take off your dress. You’ll regret it if you don’t.”

“No.”

For the next few minutes, Gwen felt Arthur tug and push her, eventually removing the dress from her. Then his fingers worked on her hair, loosening the fancy bun.

“Make up?” he asked, his lips brushing her ear.

She pushed him away, then felt him laugh against her. His arms came around her and she was tucked into his embrace.

She dreamt of many things, most of them she couldn’t remember the next morning. But she remembered dreaming of Arthur, of the cat she was planning to get, her brother and friends and her business. And it was all perfect.


End file.
